Trump Signals Support For Renewed Assault Weapons Ban
BY Herschel Smith
5 years, 3 months ago
UPDATE: My oldest son points out that this is from a year ago. I asked him if that is important? He says, “The Art of War” is necessary for understanding Trump. It’s difficult to understand whether he’s serious or simply tactically owning or feigning positions. My response: Then why the red flag laws and bump stock ban?
Via Uncle, this isn’t the Onion. It’s real.
President Donald Trump raised the issue, unprompted, during a roughly hour-long televised meeting with Feinstein and other members of Congress Wednesday afternoon at the White House. “I think it’s something you have to think about,” Trump said at the gathering to discuss school safety. “It doesn’t make sense that I have to wait until I’m 21 to get a handgun but I can get this weapon at 18,” he added, referring to assault rifles.
Trump’s comments came the same day Feinstein and Arizona Republican Sen. Jeff Flake formally rolled out their bipartisan legislation to raise the minimum age for purchasing assault weapons and high capacity magazines from 18 to 21. The California Democrat, sitting directly to the president’s left at the White House meeting, interjected at one point, asking if he’d sign legislation to raise the age to 21.
Trump said he’d give it “serious thought,” even though he acknowledged the National Rifle Association opposed such a proposal. The president said he’d been “asked that question more than any other question” in the wake of the Feb. 14 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, which killed 17 people.
He also didn’t rule out the idea of outlawing assault weapons, like the semi-automatic AR-15 rifle gunman Nikolas Cruz used to mow down students and teachers at Stoneman Douglas High. Feinstein pitched her 2017 legislation to renew the ban at the beginning of the meeting, handing Trump a copy of the bill. She was the author of the original assault weapons ban that President Bill Clinton signed into law in 1994. It expired in 2004.
Later, the president asked Sens. Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania and Joe Manchin of West Virginia if they could fold Feinstein’s legislation (and another proposal from Minnesota Democratic Sen. Amy Klobucher) into their bipartisan background checks bill. “Can you add what Amy and Dianne have, can you add them in?” Trump asked. Feinstein’s gleeful reaction, smiling widely and appearing to plead with Toomey and Manchin, immediately began circulating on Twitter.
Don’t be surprised. The “Let’s make a deal” president famously said during his campaign that “Everything is negotiable.” By that he meant everything, including recognition of your rights. We all knew that then, and we still know it today. Nothing has changed.
Trump may be just a stupid hack with Northern progressive proclivities who doesn’t understand his base. But then he could also be a Manchurian candidate for the deep state. What else would explain his nomination of Sessions for AG, his leaving Mueller, Comey and Rosenstein in positions of authority, and his support for red flag laws and the bump stock ban? Who knows except him? In any case, time is running out, and the state is evolving to an even more draconian tyranny.
There is also the support by the NRA that organization will have to answer for. Was their support just stupid, or was there some ulterior motive?
On January 14, 2019 at 8:57 pm, Wirecutter said:
I’ve got readers that go absolutely ballistic if I say anything bad about Trump. Let’s see what they’ve got to say if he pulls this crap.
Linked over at my site in the morning.
On January 14, 2019 at 9:28 pm, Woody said:
The article you reference is almost a year old. Flake is no longer sponsoring anything. DiFi rolled out new legislation after dems took the house, but my opinion is getting this close to starting reelection Trump won’t anger the base.
On January 14, 2019 at 9:32 pm, Herschel Smith said:
@Woody,
As soon as I posted this my oldest son pointed out the date of this. IDK, doesn’t make me feel any better.
On January 14, 2019 at 9:34 pm, Saint Mike said:
As I’ve said before, Donald J Trump will be a one term president.
On January 14, 2019 at 11:33 pm, Cederq said:
I am a regular reader at Wirecutters and there are some fervent Trump lovers there. I agree Trump is not what is on display. I voted for him but peeked behind the curtain and he isn’t any different then any of the other hacks that have aspired to the presidency. He just gave us some breathing room, but come 2020 hell is gonna break forth.
On January 14, 2019 at 11:44 pm, Herschel Smith said:
@Cederq,
Well, I could be wrong and this could all be 3D chess. But then … ask yourself a question. If a national red flag law came to his desk, NOT STATE, but national, written by the dems, what would Trump do? Will he sign it? He’s already signaled his support for such a measure. And he’s already ordered the ATF to ban bump stocks, a terrible precedent.
On January 15, 2019 at 12:40 am, Mike said:
Why are so many willing to cut Pres. Trump some slack when the Exact same issues earned Pres. Bush eternal condemnation? Remember, GWB said that he would sign another assault weapons ban if it hit his desk back in 2004 when the Clinton assault weapon ban expired.
I don’t have the answers. I do think it’s rather odd that Donald Trump Jr. is a hunter and competitive shooter but he seems to have No influence on his father when it comes to guns and the Second Amendment. At least, that’s what I’m seeing.
On January 15, 2019 at 7:17 am, Mark Matis said:
I would only note that President Trump does not claim to be a gun expert, but instead relies upon advice from “recognized” experts in putting forth his positions. You can thank the Lairds of Fairfax for the bump stock. They told him that was fine. I would not be surprised if he got their advice on this as well.
On January 15, 2019 at 7:43 am, Bram said:
After that disastrous conference with Feinstein, I think Trump realized that there was no better way to guarantee a loss in 2020 than playing ball with the gun controllers. Some of his most loyal supporters went ballistic on him.
Haven’t heard anything about it since then and I assume he learned his lesson.
On January 15, 2019 at 9:21 am, H said:
Bram: So you’ve completely missed every bit of news about how Trump imposed a bump stock ban by executive fiat after that “disastrous conference”?
He most certainly did not learn his lesson, and we have every expectation he’ll sign any “reasonable compromise” the Lairds of Fairfax AKA NRA bless that comes to his desk. Which means anything but another “assault weapons” ban … probably. A Red Flag law for sure, which is a severe danger to every gun owner.
Actually any target of a grudge, in the first report on Florida’s Red Flag law, it was mentioned that half the targets didn’t even own guns. The first police murder from such a law was later described as being triggered by “family being family”, the target did nothing to justly earn the attention of the state but a grudge held by a niece.
On January 15, 2019 at 11:36 am, JAG said:
I have a different take on the Bump stock ban. I could be wrong but this HAD to go to the Courts otherwise, the next nit wit Dem Prez would just ban them outright.
GOA had their lawsuit in the drawer and filed it quite quickly.
Better to do it while in a politically friendly environment/territory and I think the supremes would strike the ban down as the NFA language is VERY specific.
On January 15, 2019 at 12:46 pm, Towser said:
Trump or no Trump – all of this is coming soon to a neighborhood near you. If you cannot see Trump for what he is – a man with no convictions – you are turning a blind eye. I do not despise the man but I have no affinity for him either. I’ve always said at best he would be a bump in the road to globalism. Ronald Reagan was a bump too. The direction we are heading as a nation is clear, only our speed is in question. Are we racing towards it or rocketing? Short of the believers of our nation dropping to our knees in repentance and askance in mass, there is no turning back.
Herschel, I agree fitness is important. It may well be more important than hardware, however I decline to debate the issue. Could it be we are missing something more basic i.e. our spiritual health? Maybe you are in fine shape spiritually and if so, I commend you, but I’d say as a nation, focusing on the spiritual aspect of our lives may be more critical. If anybody is wondering, I find myself looking too hard at carnal aspects myself, so excuse me while I yank a beam out of my own eye.
On January 15, 2019 at 6:51 pm, H said:
JAG: Why is is so much better that this nit wit GOP Prez outright banned them? Because that’s exactly what happened, after Obama’s BATFE waived them through, following the law. Wouldn’t it be better for more Trump picked judged to be in the Federal judiciary? Especially when there’s still an anti-gun majority in the Supreme Court after Kavanaugh was seated, that has already denied one appeal by a pro-RKBA group, the one that also claimed it being signed by the interim Attorney General made it invalid?
What did Trump gain by requiring hundreds of thousands of gun owners to destroy theirs or become Federal felons? You think they and their pro-RKBA family and friends are going to enthusiastically vote for him in 2020?
On January 15, 2019 at 7:02 pm, Gryphon said:
Trump is ‘deep state’ OWNED. He wouldn’t Be Here if He wasn’t a Tool of the Bankers. His caving on the ‘Bump Stock’ issue is Proof that “Gun Rights” are just another Political Posture Item to Him. I am in agreement with those who say that Trump is going to be made the “Fall Guy” along with Whites, Conservatives, Christians, etc. by the (((bolsheviks))) when their ‘fiat money’ scam collapses, and Chaos Ensues. They Still won’t have ‘gotten the Guns’ as per the communist manifesto, but the Desperation of the Deep State has become Obvious since the Syrians, Russians, and Iranians Handed them their A$$ in Syria.
Watch (you need to use non-US Sources) what is going on in France; the “Yellow Jackets” protests have gone past opposing a Gas Tax (for GlowBull Warming) to a general Anti-Deep-State, and ANTI-BANK Revolt. The government there is Desperate to Stop it, and now they are Arming the Riot Police with Carbines, and Armored Vehicles with “European Union” Markings have been seen. France looks like it will be the tipping point for Nationalism in Europe, and the potential Economic Effects could spread Here.
Nobody has “Enough Ammo”, not even the Army…
On January 15, 2019 at 8:00 pm, BRVTVS said:
The article may be a year old, but remarkably timely nonetheless considering Trump’s newest pick for AG: https://www.gunowners.org/alert11519.htm
On January 15, 2019 at 8:30 pm, dad29 said:
Seems to me that Trump will advance a Liberal/Lefty position, wait a couple of weeks (or days) and then foreclose it, going back to a somewhat conservative outlook. I suspect that he tosses stuff out there to get feedback from the emails, phone messages, etc.
Remember that he suggested he’d sign the wall-less budget (lasted 2 days before full reverse)?
As to Sessions, I think Trump thought he was getting a solid guy. However, Sessions was flim-flammed by DoJ heavies into thinking that he had to recuse. IOW, Sessions was stupid, Trump was loyal.
We are living in very strange times.
On January 15, 2019 at 9:13 pm, H said:
dad29 said:
Where the “somewhat conservative outlook” just happens to match the NRA’s, ban bump stocks and push Red Flag laws. Which just happen to be terrible for Trump and gun owners, respectively. Won’t take many more gun owners murdered by the police for the latter to also be very bad for Trump, if enough people link his continued to this day support for Red Flag laws to those deaths. If the Congress passes a law like Rubio’s and Trump signs it….
On January 16, 2019 at 6:54 pm, dad29 said:
First off, I don’t expect Trump to sign a ‘red flag’ bill, even though his proposed A.G. supports one. But if he does, don’t expect that the murders you predict will be connected to Trump in the (alleged) minds of the public at large.
Red Flag is THE current Gun Grabber hot flash legislation. It’s unconstitutionally vague no matter how it’s written, of course, but (D)-run States will be saddled with it.
On January 16, 2019 at 8:27 pm, H said:
dad29: Perhaps we shall see if your faith is rewarded, but for now I can’t see Trump’s continuing public advocacy for Red Flag laws as a good thing.
But as to “(D)-run States” being saddled with them, perhaps you should re-read the thread, for Florida is now one of those, and it’s voters just barely elected the Republican Governor who pushed and signed it with a seat in the Senate, where he and the other Republican Senator are pushing a law to “encourage” its adoption nationwide. Indiana is also a Red state with one, according to Everytown.
On January 17, 2019 at 1:17 pm, dad29 said:
Well, H, I’ll remain optimistic, but late yesterday I read “the rest of the story” on Bill Barr, the AG nominee, and it’s ugly. Google or duck-duck-go his history on Ruby Ridge….
H.mmmmmmm.mmmm
On January 17, 2019 at 2:14 pm, H said:
dad29: Urk, I doubted there was anything new in the link supplied by BRVTVS, but you prompted me to check and I was way wrong, especially since it’s by James Bovard, who’s writings on these topics are in my experience ironclad.
What Barr did was unforgivable, and doesn’t suggest he’s even a wise AG pick for Trump, he’s going to protect institutions like the criminally anti-Trump CIA, DoJ, and FBI instead of Trump, the office of the President, etc., unless he’s had a road to Damascus conversion since then. Given how much of what he did was after Waco….
On January 17, 2019 at 2:54 pm, H said:
OK, it’s really bad, the GOA just sent out an alert which prompted me to check the CSPAN transcript, search on “ERPOS” as in extreme risk protection orders AKA Red Flag laws. Quoting with normal capitalization and paragraph breaks … in fact, let me include the whole section the search brought up, given Herschel’s opinion on the witch doctors of mental health, who’ve just now proclaimed masculinity is a mental illness:
Just for the record we already have such standards, although they’re abused by the VA for example (never say or let them know you have PTSD, or formally allow someone to take care of your finances while you’re in the hospital). Given that he’s both claiming we need them and is a big fan of Red Flag laws, it’s clear what fate he wants for us, has not changed a whit since the early-mid 1990s when he fully supported the actions of Fed’s death squad.
The arrogance alone in imagining we can “stop these massacres from happening in the first place”, even the gun control utopias our betters in the US love can’t do that. He’s also calling for Federal coercion of the states that refuse to forward their mental health records of involuntary confinements and perhaps adjudications to the NICS.
The GOA also noted he probably perjured himself, here’s from the same transcript, I cleaned the question up a bit:
He of course is on record as fully supporting G. H. W. Bush and Clinton’s “assault weapons” and magazine bans, and it’s hard to imagine he didn’t review that given that it was certain to come up in the hearings.
Any guesses on how the NRA will score voting for his confirmation?