CNN Uses Colorado School Shooting to Pitch Cory Booker’s Gun Licensing Plan: ‘We Don’t Have to Live This Way’
EXCERPT:
AVLON: “Twenty years ago when the Columbine killings occurred a mass shooting at the schools seemed a horrific aberration. But in the past 20 years there have been shootings at 234 schools according to data compiled by 'The Washington Post.' And this total doesn't include colleges. At least 144 students, teachers and other people have been killed in these assaults. More than 300 injured. The median age of the shooter, 16. This is an American epidemic and it's getting worse. The locations of the deadliest mass school shootings have been scarred in our mind, Sandy Hook, Parkland. But the vast majority of them fade from memory. What can’t be forgotten is that we haven’t been able to summon the political will to stem the bleeding. And yes, this can't be done consistent with the Second Amendment. Even the landmark Heller decision written by Justice Scalia recognized, quote, 'an important limitation on the right to keep and carry arms like the historic tradition of prohibiting the carrying of dangerous and unusual weapons.' So, it's notable that the first big picture gun control proposal has been put forward by a 2020 candidate. Senator Cory Booker, former Mayor of Newark, New Jersey has laid down a sweeping plan that he says will help end the gun violence epidemic in America. At the heart of the proposal is a national program requiring people to get a license to buy and carry a gun, much like people are required to have a license to drive a car. Basically a person would have to be fingerprinted, passed by universal background check, and complete a certified gun safety course before they take possession of a firearm. The license would need to be renewed every five years. A similar program has been put in place in countries like Australia and Canada. They've also been implemented in states like Connecticut where study showed that gun killings fell 40 percent in the first decade after a permit to purchase law was implemented. Now, critics call Booker's the plan dangerous, pointing out that it could lead to the creation of a federal gun owner database, long the subject of NRA fears and fundraiser. Speaking of the NRA Booker's also proposing to go after them, saying that as president he’ll ask the IRS to review the NRA's tax status. Booker would close gun purchase loopholes and reinstate the assault weapons ban. He’s also proposing requiring handguns to be manufactured with technology known as micro stamping, which would make shell casings traceable to specific guns to helpo law enforcement. But there are plenty of practical hurdles. Many of these proposals require passage through the Senate which is highly unlikely to have a Democratic filibuster after the 2020 elections. There also will be court challenges and cultural barriers as well as questions of how to deal with mental health. In some ways a politically risky plan. Red state Democrats often cringe at guns reform proposals. But it’s bold and may help Booker stand out in the crowded field with a concrete proposal to help stem the tide of gun violence in our country, which is not just in schools but places of worship, where even thoughts and prayers can’t seem to help. And that's your reality check."
CAMEROTA: "John, I’m so glad you focused on that. We don’t have to live this way. We don’t have to send our children to school every day not knowing if they are sitting ducks for a school shooter that day."
