We begin today’s roundup with The New York Times and its editorial on diminishing the influence of the NRA:
With midterm elections coming up this fall, America has a chance to get that message across. Candidates must realize that reducing gun violence is a winning and moral issue. Aggressive turnout by voters who believe this can defeat the N.R.A. at the polls. Until then, the bloodshed will continue.
Russel Berman at The Atlantic highlights the fact that even modest gun safety measures are poisoned by the NRA:
In December, on a vote that largely fell along party lines, the House had passed legislation to tighten up the National Instant Background Check System, in response to the revelation that the gunman in Texas had a record of domestic violence that should have barred him from purchasing a gun.
“That’s a piece of legislation we passed that’s sitting in the Senate,” Ryan said.
What the speaker did not mention was why the bill hasn’t passed the Senate, or why only six Democrats voted for it in the House: In addition to the modest changes to background checks, the legislation secured for the National Rifle Association its top federal priority—a provision treating concealed-carry permits essentially as driver’s licenses that would override the stricter regulations of individual states.