207 Of The 235 Democrats In The House Have Signed Onto The Assault Weapons Ban-- These Are The 28 Who Still Refuse

by Mai-Thu Perret

The great state of Texas reacts to NRA/GOP massacre in red hellhole: "A bulk of gun law changes took effect in Texas on Sunday, loosening restrictions just one day after a mass shooting near Odessa and Midland left at least 7 people dead. The laws open more opportunities for Texans to have firearms and store ammunition in public places. From churches to public schools to foster homes, the laws also loosen restrictions on where a firearm is permitted. The laws were already set to take effect Sept. 1 but come just one day after a routine traffic stop on Interstate 20 triggered a deadly shooting rampage."

Odessa is the county seat of Ector County and right up Route 20 is Midland, county seat of Midland, Texas. Both are in Texas' 11th congressional district, which is represented by gun-nut Michael Conaway. It's a hideous red bastion of grotesque ignorance and anti-Jesus commercial-evangelicalism. Trump won the district 77.8% to 19.1%, his second worst performance in the state. If there's one district that wouldn't mind sacrificing a a few friends and neighbors-- maybe even family members to the NRA/GOP-- as long as they could keep their assault weapons, TX-11 is the place.

Only one Republican in Congress has signed on as a co-sponsor to David Cicilline's ban on the sales of assault weapons. Only one.

Last year Beto spent a lot of time campaigning in red hellholes like Midland and Odessa. It didn't do any good. And the Democratic candidate, Jennie Lou Leader lost to Conaway, 176,603 (80.1%) to 40,631 (18.4%). Hard to imagine that many Democrats could live in a place like TX-11. Midland is the most populous county in the district and Ector is the 3rd most populated. The PVI of the district as a whole is a horrifying R+32. Last year Midland County was an R+60 and Ector was an R+46. That doesn't mean the people there deserve to be shot down in the street like dogs. But... better them than normal people in Gilroy, El Paso or Dayton.

The gun nut is dead. The news isn't reporting how many MAGA hats they found in his truck. Almost everyone in Odessa and everyone in Midland owns guns. No one stopped him. If only some teachers had some AK-47s maybe one of them would have! The guy was on a shooting spree, driving around shooting people randomly from his truck (and then from a hijacked mail delivery truck, the way some asshole might do to animals in Africa. 21 people were shot--including 3 cops and a 2 year old; 7 people are in critical condition-- and so far 7 have died, plus the murderer. One less Trump/Conaway voter anyway. Police killed him in a gun fight in a movie theater.

Matt Schaefer is an attorney with a degree from Texas Tech University School of Law and serves as a state legislator from Tyler, in the very backward northeast part of Texas. Best known as an anti-choice extremist-- many would say psychopath-- he tweeted today that only prayer can stop the NRA/GOP massacres. He adamantly opposes background checks and makes a big fuss over how single mothers should be carring guns. As far as we know, Schaefer wasn't shooting anyone; but the blood of those victims are on his hands and on the hands of legislators like him-- not just in Texas, but all over the country... but mostly in Texas.

Pence: "Our hearts go out to all the victims and families who had loved ones lose their lives." We should only be so lucky as to see his and Trump's hearts cut into pieces and sent to Midland and Odessa. Beto-- and most normal people-- had a different perspective: "We need to end this epidemic."

David Cicilline's bill to ban the sale of assault weapons (H.R.196), which Pelosi is preventing from being voted on, now has 208 co-sponsors, 207 of the 235 Democrats in the House plus one Republican, Peter King from Long Island. The most recent reluctant co-sponsors finally came on board Friday: Katie Hill (New Dem-CA), Greg Stanton (New Dem-AZ) and Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO). Considering that the bill was introduced February 15, it took quite a few murders for the most recent converts to work up the guts to sign on. I bet you're wondering who the 28 Democrats still refusing to sign on, right? The culprits:

• NANCY PELOSI (D-San Francisco, city of shame)
• Cheri Bustos (New Dem-IL + Chair of DCCC who should be fired immediately)
• Colin Allred (New Dem-TX)
• Henry Cuellar (Blue Dog-TX)
• Collin Peterson (Blue Dog-MN)
• Sanford Bishop (Blue Dog-GA)
• Anthony Brindisi (Blue Dog-NY)
• Tom O'Halleran (Blue Dog-AZ)
• Joe Cunningham (Blue Dog-SC)
• Sharice Davids (New Dem-KS)
• Pete DeFazio (D-OR)
• Lizzie Fletcher (New Dem-TX)
• Jared Golden (D-ME)
• Vicente González (Blue Dog-TX)
• Kendra Horn (Blue Dog-OK)
• Andy Kim (D-NJ)
• Ron Kind (New Dem-WI)
• Elaine Luria (New Dem-VA)
• Tom Malinowski (New Dem-NJ)
• Ben McAdams (Blue Dog-UT)
• Kurt Schrader (Blue Dog-OR)
• Kim Schrier (New Dem-WA)
• Terri Sewell (New Dem-AL)
• Elissa Slotkin (New Dem-MI)
• Mike Thompson (Blue Dog-CA)
• Xochitl Torres Small (Blue Dog-NM)
• Lauren Underwood (D-IL)
• Jeff Van Drew (Blue Dog-NJ)

No Political Appetite For... by Nancy Ohanian

It is a mistake for any Democrat-- or for mainstream Republican for that matter-- to refuse to get behind David Cicilline's assault weapons bill. But the members whose names I have bolded on the list above... for them it is probably suicidal as well as just plain stupid. Suburban women are going to remember who supported and who refused to support this bill. And-- while we're on the subject-- please remember, if you contribute any money at all to the DCCC, it does not go to progressive candidates or progressive incumbents; it goes to the people on this list. Cheri Bustos wants to replicate her hideous self in the Democratic caucus and run for speaker. She's against Cicilline's sales ban. That's your DCCC, folks. Don't forget when they come sniffing around begging for contributions.