Right out of the Big Lie Playbook. Particularly effective with a cooperating MSM.
Posted on 04/17/2013 3:34:17 PM PDT by Kaslin
Much of the drama has already dissipated; most of these amendments will fail. The Toomey/Manchin bipartisan compromise appears to be dead in the water, with Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-NH) and Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND) pounding home the final legislative nails earlier today. USA Today has a useful primer on what to expect this afternoon and evening, including the items liberals will be watching most carefully:
- The Public Safety and Second Amendment Rights Protection Act (Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and three co-sponsors): The compromise background check provision expands background checks to gun shows and Internet sales, but exempts family-to-family and other in-home sales. It also authorizes $400 million to upgrade the national background check database and reduces the turnaround time for background checks from three days to two days; in four years, it would be reduced to one day
- The Assault Weapons Ban (Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., and 23 co-sponsors): The amendment bans the sale, transfer and importation of assault rifles, including 157 specifically mentioned in the law -- a broader definition than existed from 1994 to 2004. Current lawful owners of assault weapons would be grandfathered.
- The Large-Capacity Magazine Feeding Devices Amendment (Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J., and 21 co-sponsors): The measure would ban magazines and other devices holding more than 10 rounds, but exempts .22 caliber rifles. Police officers -- both on- and off-duty -- would also be exempted. It also authorizes federally funded gun buyback programs to purchase high-capacity magazines.
None of those three are expected to pass (see update), though some of the other provisions might. The assault weapons ban and magazine capacity limit will go down hard, a reality that has forced a beleagured Harry Reid to toss a last-minute gesture of lefty solidarity by backing Feinstein's doomed dream. Stay tuned for updates...
UPDATE - Toomey/Manchin fails 54-46, with a handful of aisle-crossers in both directions. The bill's supporters were six votes short of 60. Four Republicans joined most Democrats in voting aye: Toomey, McCain, Kirk and Collins. Dems going the other way: Baucus, Begich, Heitkamp, Pryor, and Reid (for procedural reasons).
UPDATE II - The primary Republican replacement amendment also goes down, 52-48. Seven Nine Democrats joined nearly every Republican in voting yes, but it wasn't enough. Looks like nothing (or close to it) is getting passed tonight.
UPDATE III - I'm sure this statement won't be demagogic at all:
White House sets 5:30 pm Rose Garden statement on guns by President Obama — Jamie Dupree (@jamiedupree) April 17, 2013
UPDATE IV - Here's the roster of Democrats who joined the GOP on their unsuccessful alternate amendment:
D's voting for GOP gun bill: Baucus, Begich, Donnelly, Hagan, Heitkamp, Landrieu, McCaskill, Pryor & Tester. — Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) April 17, 2013
UPDATE V - Leahy/Collins (re: gun-trafficking) is defeated.
UPDATE VI - The difficulty of gun legislation, in one tweet:
RT @hotlinejosh: RT @mikememoli: Asked to explain his vote, Sen. Baucus said one word: "Montana." — Lachlan Markay (@lachlan) April 17, 2013
UPDATE VII - Down goes Cornyn's amendment on concealed-carry reciprocity, 57-43. That's an awful lot of votes for the idea, even though it failed. Chuck Todd points out that more Senators voted to vastly expand gun rights than for the tepid Toomey/Manchin gun control law. Wow.
UPDATE VIII - Let the lefty machinations begin:
---> MT @fschouten it begins: @boldprogressive announces full-page ads against Pryor, Begich, Baucus& Heitkamp over bkgrnd check votes — Brad Dayspring (@BDayspring) April 17, 2013
UPDATE VII - Surprise:
Newtown families, Gabby Giffords at the podium at the White House. whitehouse.gov/live — Andrew Kaczynski (@BuzzFeedAndrew) April 17, 2013
UPDATE XIII - The federal Assault Weapons Ban stays buried. It wasn't close: 40 yes votes, 60 no.
UPDATE IX - Great point. Keep this in mind when you see video of the president's furious -- and I mean furious -- Rose Garden statement:
Didn’t this guy have 60 Democratic votes in the Senate not long ago? Where was the gun-control push then? — Allahpundit (@allahpundit) April 17, 2013
FUBO
Several amendments were voted down because they didn’t get the required 60 votes. My understanding is that the cloture vote on Apr. 9 allows the bill to pass the Senate on a majority vote. So whatever the bill reads and if no amendments are agreed to then a simple majority can pass it in the Senate. Don’t know how accurate all that is.
from the following:
The cloture vote does not guarantee that the bill will pass, but it does now put it up to a simple majority vote in the Senate. Democrats have the majority in the Senate, and often vote with their party rather than vote with what their constituents want. They did that very thing when they passed ObamaCare, and had not read that bill before passing it either. Democrat Mary Landrieu, for instance, is from a red state, but she’ll do what the party tells her to do after extracting some meaningless concessions. The pressure will then mount on the House to kill it. Obama’s political army OFA is already emailing its minions to keep the pressure up on Congress to pass the bill — which no one has actually read.
We need to make that faggot pay to replace that door jamb.
I did email him and let him know we expected a NO vote. I don’t know if it did any good but I will support any conservative candidate.
Beautiful! Thank you!
remember the MSM was confident is reporting THE GREAT ONE Obama was PERSONALLY making calles.
the democrats must hate him, really really hate him.
This bill was never major. The base bill does almost nothing, the amendment that was rejected was about the minimum possible thing they could do and say they did anything.
Obama should feel lucky that the entire bill isn’t hijacked to roll BACK some of the restrictions on guns.
Agreed, the base bill was intended as a vehicle to which these other proposed laws could be affixed as amendments. Looks like Lautenberg’s magazine-capacity amendment is still awaiting a vote, though. Think I’ll wait on that one before celebrating (but I am smiling a bit - can’t help it).
Right out of the Big Lie Playbook. Particularly effective with a cooperating MSM.
There is only one reason this failed, and that is because it would not have passed the House. These senators didn't want to put themselves on the line and then have it hurt them.
Always count ALL democrats in favor of gun control. If this were a matter of one or 2 votes WITH a good chance to pass in the House, then all of those democrats would have voted FOR it.
Well, regardless - time for that sip of celebratory whiskey.
Michael Savage said that the one positive in the Boston disaster is that gun control will fail, he said NO ONE is going to give up their guns to a gang of “flatfoots” who failed to protect the country.
“Liberals subvert vocabulary to promote lies; conservatives need to use correct vocabulary to promote truth.”
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I totally agree but there seems to be a general disrespect for precision in language. After reading a post on FR I sometimes wonder exactly what the meaning was supposed to be.
To prevent my state Senator from doing the same thing NY did, I write him every week and tell him that it is a waste of time to continue to try to pass unconstitutional laws as my Sheriff will not enforce them. He is the chair of the judiciary committee.
What you say is definitely true. Had these bills had a good chance at passing, the Democrats would have fallen in line.
That Harry Reid has now fully evolved into an anti-Second Amendment politician (which was already clear from how he’s voted on Sup Court nominees)is no surprise, and it gives us a chance once again to thank the Nevada GOP for nominating Sharon Angle in 2010. Thanks Nevada GOP for nominating the one candidate who Reid could defeat. Thanks for paving the way for Todd Akin and Richard Mourdock.
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