search
Sections List
American Journal News

GOP senator who received $50,000 from NRA slams any efforts for gun safety

The shooter who massacred 59 Americans in Las Vegas was in possession of modified rapid-fire guns in his hotel room, and now that an effort is underway to ban the tools used to make those weapons deadlier, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) is already opposing it. Grassley’s position against this modest suggestion should not be a […]

By Oliver Willis - October 04, 2017
Share
Sen. Chuck Grassley

The shooter who massacred 59 Americans in Las Vegas was in possession of modified rapid-fire guns in his hotel room, and now that an effort is underway to ban the tools used to make those weapons deadlier, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) is already opposing it.

Grassley’s position against this modest suggestion should not be a surprise. He has received more than $50,000 in campaign donations from the NRA to push its agenda — including $9,900 in just the past year — and has received an “A” grade for his voting record against gun legislation.

A bump stock, which was found on the Las Vegas shooter’s guns, allows rifles like the AR-15 to shoot bullets in rapid succession, mimicking the capabilities of an automatic weapon. Fully automatic weapons have been banned in the United States, but bump stocks are currently legal.

The gun used in the Pulse night club shooting in Florida that killed 49 shot at a rate of about 24 shots in 9 seconds. The Las Vegas gun made 90 shots in 10 seconds, while a fully automatic gun shots bullets at a rate of 98 bullets in 7 seconds.

Democratic senators offered a bill that would make the modification tools illegal. In a press conference introducing the legislation, California Sen. Dianne Feinstein noted, “The only reason to modify a gun like this is to kill as many people as possible in as short of a time as possible.”

But Grassley, who leads the Senate Judiciary Committee and would have jurisdiction over legislation on bump stocks, started jamming on the brakes almost immediately.

He told reporters in Iowa that it would be unlikely that legislation addressing the issue could pass the Senate, and threw up a series of excuses for why it couldn’t happen.

Grassley did not have the courage to give his personal opinion of such legislation. Instead, he dodged by saying “you’ve got to develop the legislation so you can get 60 votes.” He then asked, “Can you get 60 votes for it?”

Grassley further tried to evade responsibility by shifting blame to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, asserting that “you’ve still got to get a leader who’s going to bring it up” for a vote.

He also invoked an NRA-approved talking point that any attempt at legislation is pointless. “You need to make sure legislation really solves the problem,” he said. “Is there anything we could’ve done in the past that would’ve kept that from happening?”

Of course, there is no way to answer that question. But after every mass shooting over the last several years, Grassley and his fellow NRA-endorsed Republicans have refused to even attempt any legislation to prevent the next deadly tragedy, opting instead to do nothing at all.

The point of gun safety legislation is not to stop every instance of gun violence, but to reduce the number of instances of gun crime so fewer people die in the long run.

Grassley’s immediate opposition echoes his fellow NRA cash recipient, Sen. John Thune (R-SD), who said potential gun violence victims should simply “get small” when threatened by a mass shooter.

Thune and Grassley show why the NRA invests in Republican senators. For just a few thousand dollars they, and others like them, are ready to quash even the most sensible of legislation on the lobby’s behalf.

Their cynical calculus is that allowing guns to continue taking lives unimpeded is more than worth the moral and societal decay that comes with cashing the NRA’s checks.


AJ News
Get the latest news here first.

Tai News

Newsletter
Read More
 Republicans choose violence in bonkers day on Capitol Hill

 Republicans choose violence in bonkers day on Capitol Hill

By Jesse Valentine - November 16, 2023
Is 2024 the year of the Instagram moms?

Is 2024 the year of the Instagram moms?

By Amanda Becker, The 19th - November 15, 2023
U.S. Department of Justice to join suit against Alabama AG’s abortion prosecution threats

U.S. Department of Justice to join suit against Alabama AG’s abortion prosecution threats

By Alander Rocha - November 10, 2023
Top Republican Senate candidates are endorsed by foes of Social Security and Medicare

Top Republican Senate candidates are endorsed by foes of Social Security and Medicare

By Jesse Valentine - November 08, 2023
Most Americans want health exceptions in abortion bans. Political infighting keeps blocking them.

Most Americans want health exceptions in abortion bans. Political infighting keeps blocking them.

By Kelcie Moseley-Morris - November 07, 2023
Possible 2024 Wisconsin Senate candidate repeatedly predicted recessions that never happened

Possible 2024 Wisconsin Senate candidate repeatedly predicted recessions that never happened

By Jesse Valentine - November 02, 2023
AJ News
Latest
Florida Sen. Rick Scott backs Donald Trump in revived push to repeal Obamacare

Florida Sen. Rick Scott backs Donald Trump in revived push to repeal Obamacare

By Jesse Valentine - November 30, 2023
Tate Reeves took donations from power company that hiked customer rates

Tate Reeves took donations from power company that hiked customer rates

By Jesse Valentine - November 06, 2023
Daniel Cameron ran on depoliticizing the Kentucky AG’s office. He made it more political.

Daniel Cameron ran on depoliticizing the Kentucky AG’s office. He made it more political.

By Jesse Valentine - November 03, 2023
Republican operatives sound every alarm on current trajectory of 2023 governor’s race

Republican operatives sound every alarm on current trajectory of 2023 governor’s race

By Adam Ganucheau, Mississippi Today - October 24, 2023
Michigan Republican US Senate candidate Peter Meijer backed strict abortion bans

Michigan Republican US Senate candidate Peter Meijer backed strict abortion bans

By Jesse Valentine - November 30, 2023
Abortion opponents push state lawmakers to promote unproven ‘abortion reversal’

Abortion opponents push state lawmakers to promote unproven ‘abortion reversal’

By Anna Claire Vollers - November 30, 2023
Biden campaign pivots to focus on healthcare

Biden campaign pivots to focus on healthcare

By Kim Lyons - November 30, 2023
Abortion advocates submit ballot issue affirming right to terminate pregnancy in Montana

Abortion advocates submit ballot issue affirming right to terminate pregnancy in Montana

By Nicole Girten - November 27, 2023
Proposed Arkansas ballot measure would make abortion access a constitutional right

Proposed Arkansas ballot measure would make abortion access a constitutional right

By Tess Vrbin - November 27, 2023