Senate Republican Whip John Thune (R-S.D.) said Thursday he agrees with Cornyn’s concerns. If you can do it for the election, you can do it if somebody wanted to challenge, for example, Texas law on the Second Amendment,” he said. I don’t want other states having a chance to change Texas law based on a similar effort. John Cornyn (R-Texas) said he was puzzled by the legal theory behind the challenge.Ĭornyn, a former Texas Supreme Court justice, said it’s inappropriate for states to interfere in the laws of other states. It doesn’t prevent crime.Senior Republican lawmakers are expressing serious misgivings about a lawsuit the Republican attorney general of Texas is leading against the election results in four swing states, reflecting deep divisions in the party over the legal strategy.Įven as more than 100 House Republicans on Thursday signed an amicus brief in support of the Texas lawsuit aimed at overturning the election results in four swing states, Sen. You see Democrats and a lot of folks in the media, whose immediate solution is to try to restrict the constitutional rights of law-abiding citizens. In an interview with CNN after the shooting, Cruz said: “Inevitably, when there’s a murder of this kind, you see politicians try to politicize it. In a statement, the NRA said the bill placed “unnecessary burdens” on those who wish to exercise their second amendment right.īy contrast, Cornyn’s counterpart and junior Texas senator Ted Cruz has doubled down on his support for unfettered access to firearms. Cornyn’s current term ends in 2027, however, so the long-term effects of his actions remain to be seen. His longstanding record for supporting second amendment rights did little to help his case and Jacobs eventually withdrew his bid for re-election.Ĭornyn currently has an A+ rating from the National Rifle Association, the powerful gun lobby group that rates and funds lawmakers based on their support for gun rights, but his latest actions could negatively affect the organization’s sentiments towards the politician. After voicing support for a federal ban on assault weapons, he was condemned by many Republican figures, including Donald Trump Jr. The Republican congressman Chris Jacobs of New York crossed his party in the gun rights debate after the deadly mass shooting in Buffalo earlier this year. The bill, if passed, would close the boyfriend loophole that currently allows unmarried partners with a history of domestic violence to obtain firearms and force more gun retailers to register as federally licensed firearm dealers so they have to complete background checks.īut regulations like raising the age limit to buy assault weapons from 18 to 21 did not make it into the proposals, nor did any sort of regulations for existing gun owners and the final version of the bill is seen as watered down by many Democrats.īut despite this, Cornyn is firmly in the line of fire for much of his party by backing the bill and other Republican politicians – whose districts have also seen mass shootings – have already paid a steep price for similar stances on gun reform. Cornyn’s experience reveals the deeply entrenched power of the gun lobby and gun rights supporters in the Republican party, even in the wake of horrific mass shootings. He is caught between some constituents demanding immediate gun law reform and members of his own party who are fervent defenders of a maximalist interpretation of the second amendment at any cost – including many national Republican figures.īut taking a stance against his party’s line on gun rights – even if the proposed reforms are mild – could cost Cornyn politically in his home state. The tragedy in his home state left 19 children and two schoolteachers dead and has put the senior senator in a difficult political position. But after the incident, Cornyn was dubbed a “ two-faced politician” by gun rights groups like the National Association for Gun Rights and Texas Gun Rights.
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