Sharp as a Marble - Senator Marc Rubio’s response to gun control not exactly comforting

Senator Marc Rubio’s response to gun control not exactly comforting

I got this email today from Senator Rubio

Dear Mr. Allen,
Thank you for writing to me regarding the tragedy in Newtown, Connecticut. I share your concern for the victims of this tragedy.
My heart breaks for the victims and families impacted by this senseless act of violence. In a world that can at times be defined by its darkness, children are a reminder of what is good, cheerful and beautiful about life. An act of violence against these defenseless young people, as well as the faculty and staff who dedicate themselves daily to educating and caring for them, is a deed of unconscionable evil. I pray that God holds Newtown close as the community continues to heal from this tragedy.
In the aftermath of this unspeakable tragedy, like millions of Americans, I am looking for public policy changes that might prevent such a horrible event from happening again. I continue to be a strong supporter of the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution which guarantees citizens the right to safely and responsibly bear arms. At the same time, I have always been open to measures that would keep guns out of the hands of criminals and the mentally ill. In light of this horrible tragedy, I am open to new ideas to prevent mass tragedies like this from happening again.
It is an honor and a privilege to serve as your United States Senator. I appreciate your concern regarding this situation. If I can ever be of assistance to you, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Sincerely,
Marco Rubio
United States Senator

Emphasis mine on the phrases that worry me.

One, Republicans are not an automatic friend to gun owners. Never forget that.

Two, while Mr. Rubio does not say he’d support gun control, he doesn’t say he won’t, and “In light of” sounds an awful lot like “HOWEVER!” which means there are things that he would consider that you and I might not appreciate.

So, it’s off to write another email asking him to clarify what is and isn’t on the table for him. I have no problems with policies to keep guns out of the hands of the mentally ill and the criminal, but I prefer policies that keep people who are known to be a danger to society away from society rather than trying to ban objects said dangerous people might use.

If you haven’t written Senator Rubio, now is as good of a time as any.

Comments

Cory says:

on 1/14/2013 at 1:56 PM

If Rubio hopes to be a presidential contender come 2016, I doubt he'd want to do anything to piss off one of the GOP's most important voting bloc. Yet he doesn't want to be cast as an extremist if he somehow makes the GOP nomination.

That said, I don't interpret what you bolded to necessarily anti-2A. There are other measures to be taken that don't trample on our constitutional rights, such as mental health initiatives and arming teachers.

I have already written Bill Nelson thinking that the influx of pro-2A letters would sway him. I neglected Rubio since I had mistakenly thought that he would already be firmly in our camp, but I will correct that mistake.

Thanks for reporting this.

Robb Allen says:

on 1/14/2013 at 2:11 PM

It's not that it sounds like he's wanting to throw us under the bus, what it isn't is a firm "I will not vote for any 2A infringements".

I am writing him later to ask him to clarify what he would or would not support.

McThag says:

on 1/14/2013 at 2:46 PM

Making lemonade...

He says he's open to new ideas.

The gun control people are all about OLD ideas...

Yeah, I don't buy it either.

andy parypa says:

on 1/14/2013 at 2:52 PM

I am a firm supporter of our Constitution's Second Amendment. While I'm not a resident of Florida, I will be paying close attention to how you vote in any upcoming Senate vote on Second Amendment rights. Rest assured,if you vote to curtail my Second Amendment rights, I will never vote for you for any political office in which my vote will be counted That's a promise.

Prophet says:

on 1/14/2013 at 3:01 PM

Until he says otherwise I'll give Rubio the benefit of the doubt that he was referencing ideas such as eliminating gun free zones, allowing teachers to defend themselves, improve the mental health industry and other common sense measures that would actually DO something to prevent further tragedies.

Robb Allen says:

on 1/14/2013 at 3:09 PM

He could be. Hence why I'd like clarification.

Gerry says:

on 1/14/2013 at 4:14 PM

The official form letter of a US Senator.

I would read it as "You may have won the Publishers Clearing House Sweepstakes...or not."

aerodawg says:

on 1/14/2013 at 4:28 PM

The more I think about it the more of a problem I have with the idea of a "prohibited person" in general.

If someone is too dangerous to trust with a firearm, they're too dangerous to be walking the streets. Infringing on civil rights to protect us from people who should be locked up just doesn't make sense to me...

Stuart the Viking says:

on 1/14/2013 at 4:47 PM

aerodawg,

I have always looked on "prohibited person" (like in the case of a felon) as being more an extension of the punishment than a "you can't be trusted" kind of thing. They take away ALL civil rights for a time (jail/prison), and a few choice civil rights for the rest of the persons life (Not being allowed to vote/own firearms).

I admit though, I have mentally wavered on this a bit for the same reasons you state.

s

Ferret says:

on 1/15/2013 at 3:46 PM

He's waiting to see if there's enough payola built into the bill for him to make it worthwhile to vote in favor of it.

It makes me wonder if whatever gun control bill gets trotted out by the usual suspects will be thousands of pages long like the health care bill and with a trough large enough for all the fence-sitters to get their snouts wet.

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