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The same dumb dance on gun control, mental health

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Photo Credit: W. Scott McGill

Republicans, when pressed on gun safety reform, will tell you, the real problem isn’t guns, it’s mental health.

OK, let’s follow that to what would be the logical conclusion.

It’s mental health. So, you’d support legislation making it harder for people with mental health issues to buy guns.

And also, hey, what about more funding for mental healthcare?

Right?

Why don’t we see Republicans pushing that kind of legislation?

You know the answer.

They don’t believe themselves when they tell you it’s not guns, it’s mental health.

It’s just a deflection.

Same as we hear Republicans who want to deflect go on about how Chicago has strong gun-control laws in place, and look at all the shooting there, huh?

Gun control doesn’t work, is their point.

OK, so, again, follow the logic.

Chicago has strict gun control laws, surrounding states don’t, people buy guns there, take them to Chicago.

I wonder how we might be able to overcome a patchwork of gun-control laws of varying degrees of efficacy.

Maybe, just maybe, federal law.

Yeah, what a concept.

They don’t care about people dying in Chicago.

They don’t care about people dying in Dayton, El Paso.

They care about getting re-elected, and they decided long ago that the NRA is their master.

And the NRA wants you to buy more guns, because their friends in the gun industry make more money that way.

See how this works?

Now we just wait for the next mass shooting, so that we can do this dumb dance all again.

Column by Chris Graham

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