You can sense the desperation in the antis attacks upon H.R. 822. Some examples:
- Carolyn Maloney whining in the Huffington Post op-ed, “High Noon in the House.”
- Carolyn McCarthy’s op-ed to the GardenCityPatch, “Protect Your State from Nationwide Concealed Handgun Policy.”
- New Yorkers Against Gun Violence 3rd e-mail blast, “Your Right To Be Safe from Gun Violence Is Under Attack.” Cross-posted on Facebook by ProtestEasyGuns.
- Coalition to Stop Gun Violence’s e-mail blast, “Help Stop NRA’s Dangerous “National Carry” Bill Cold in the Senate.”
They appear to have given up on stopping it in the House and are pinning their hopes on the Senate again. The math is not on their side. It only failed last time with 58 votes because Chuck Schumer promised a filibuster. By my count, the ’10 elections should up that number to 64 supporters which is enough to shut off debate.
10/19 UPDATE:
Eric Schneiderman sent out a press release and letter to Senate leaders.
Assuming HR 822 passes the House and Senate, what are the odds of cobbling together a 2/3 supermajority in both houses to override a (virtually) certain Obama veto? If there are 64 supporters in the Senate, it would only take 3 more to reach the magic threshold (I’m assuming the vote in the House would be even closer, percentage-wise).
I don’t believe Obama would veto it. While he does have an antigun record, he is not a movement antigunner like Carolyn McCarthy and does not have a personal attachment to the issue.
Plus, there isn’t much opposition to the idea. A lot of politicians might not think HR-822 is a good idea, but they are not investing political capital into blocking it.
CCW “is” my right to be safe from gun violence. Show me someone who can’t return fire, and I’ll show you someone who is both a target and a fool. You’ll notice that all upper level politicians are surrounded by people who can return fire for them. Mayor Bloomberg and former Mayor Daley are the most egregious hypocrites in that regard.