Why didn’t Democrats pass gun control when they controlled Congress in Obama’s first term?

GURPS

INGSOC
PREMO Member
They didn’t ban them because they cared more about getting elected than they did about these supposed national emergencies. The Virginia Tech massacre was just two years old when Democrats assumed power in 2009, which also happened to be the 10th anniversary of the Columbine shootings. Rampage killings at American schools were very much on the national radar. But Democrats had a problem: Having inflamed right-wingers by passing a massive stimulus shortly after Obama was sworn in and then driven the right crazy by ramming ObamaCare through, they worried that pushing any more big-ticket Democratic priorities would cost them control of Congress in the midterms. I remember them in early 2010 trying to talk themselves into believing that the poor polling for O-Care would turn around as voters got to know the new law better and that a midterm rout would be averted. But they were never sure enough of that to go all-in on gun control and amnesty too. They knew that, to maintain a sizable congressional majority, they’d need their red-state Democrats to get re-elected, and two major pieces of liberal legislation on top of the stimulus and ObamaCare was simply too much.

So, faced with the choice of using their power to impose their will on policy and letting the chips fall where they may in the midterms or playing it safe in hopes of preventing an electoral slaughter in red states, they chose to play it safe. They got slaughtered anyway. And you know what? They probably would do it again right now, given the tenuous position red-state Dems like McCaskill, Tester, Donnelly et al. are in this fall. Something to keep in mind as fingers are being wagged in your face about how little you care about DREAMers and schoolkids. Democrats only care when it’s electorally convenient.

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Here’s Joe Scarborough this morning warning Republicans that gun-rights supporters aren’t welcome on his show or something. Exit question: If Democrats try to pass gun control in 2021 and are blocked by Republicans, would Majority Leader Schumer nuke the filibuster to make it happen?

https://hotair.com/archives/2018/02...ontrol-controlled-congress-obamas-first-term/
 
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