March 2, 2021

Trump just left Republicans stunned during a rollercoaster bipartisan gun reform meeting

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President Trump held a bipartisan discussion on gun reform today in which he seemed to have no clue what his party’s stances on the topic are and repeatedly proposed solutions that are sure to enrage his base and convince the NRA that they made a mistake spending so much money to get him elected.

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At one point Trump suggested seizing guns and then figuring out due process afterward, a proposal that would have had gun owners calling for violent revolution in the streets if President Obama had called for it. He also accused some of the attendees of being afraid of the NRA and decried the fact that meaningful gun reform legislation wasn’t passed by former administrations.

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The President rebuffed Representative Steve Scalise (R-LA) after the Majority Whip (himself a victim of gun violence) suggested a law allowing concealed carry across state lines. Trump told Scalise he believes such a provision would never pass a vote.

Throughout the meeting, Trump demonstrated a staggering ignorance of existing and proposed gun policy. At one point, he erroneously stated that you can’t simply walk into a store and purchase an AR-15 and that such weapons could only be acquired on the black market.

Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) quickly corrected him and pointed out that you can indeed buy AR-15s and similar semiautomatic rifles over the counter, and that it’s a huge problem for our country. Trump conceded the point and told the Republicans at the table to work with Feinstein to find a solution.

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Of course, it wouldn’t be Trump if he didn’t make a few idiotic or inane suggestions. He took some time to blame violent video games and Hollywood movies in part for gun violence, although no credible study has ever found a link between them.

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Other nations import our entertainment and don’t have nearly the same level of gun violence. The key difference between the U.S. and other countries isn’t our entertainment diet, but rather the fact that we are awash in guns that are easily acquired and distributed.

Trump also once again brought up his dangerous idea to arm teachers in schools to serve as deterrents against possible school shooters. He still seems to think that turning our classrooms into military zones is a good idea, this despite the fact that just today a school had to be evacuated and police called to the scene when a teacher opened fire inside a school.

Aaron Rupar of ThinkProgress tweeted out some of the greatest hits from today’s conference. Check them out below.

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Robert Haffey

Robert Haffey is a political writer, filmmaker, and winner of the ScreenCraft Writing Fellowship. He is a graduate of Drexel University.

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