President Trump defied the National Rifle Association and opponents of gun control, urging Republican congressmen to pass stricter gun laws in light of the Parkland school shooting.
The president chastised his fellow Republican politicians for being in thrall to the NRA. “They have great power over you people,” he said, referring to NRA officials. “They have less power over me.”
He also said something that might alarm civil libertarians in general. President Trump was responding to a comment from Vice President Pence, who said that a way should be found to take away guns from dangerous individuals, while, of course, observing due process and the individual’s rights by first getting a court order. President Trump interjected, “Take the guns first, go through due process second.” (See below for details and links.)
Some people support President Trump no matter what. Some people support gun rights no matter what. Usually, those are the same people.
Some people are against President Trump no matter what. Some people support gun control no matter what. And usually those are the same people.
I have questions for both sides:
(1) If you are a supporter of Trump and an opponent of gun control, which takes priority? Does your support of the president extend to agreeing with him that our nation needs to implement new restrictions on access to firearms? Or does your support of the Second Amendment mean that you disagree with Trump? If so, do you just disagree with him on this one issue, or does seeing this side of him turn you against him completely?
(2) If you do not approve of Trump and if you believe in gun control, are you willing to give Trump credit for opposing the NRA? Or do you still oppose him regardless of what he does to restrict gun ownership?
Photo by Elvert Barnes via Flickr, Creative Commons License
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In