By Britt Nelson

Editor’s note: The views expressed by guest columnists are not necessarily those of The Costa Rica Star, its advertisers, or its staff.

 

In a dramatic last-ditch effort to pass common sense gun-control measures Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives held a sit-in Wednesday morning on the floor of the House.

The majority Republicans only approved a Zika Virus funding bill and adjourned at 3 am Thursday to go on a weeklong break for the July 4 holiday, despite the attempt to force a gun-control vote.

The chaotic and unprecedented protest lasted through the night but ended Thursday afternoon leaving Democrats standing around and looking at one another wondering what had just happened. They are demanding that no one on ‘No Fly’ and ‘Terror-Watch’ lists be allowed to buy a gun, plus expanded background checks. Throughout the night Democrats chanted in unison, “No bill, no break!”

U.S. Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, in his weekly press conference broadcast live on Fox News Thursday morning, countered that proper U.S. House procedures concerning the Democrats’ proposed gun measures were followed and the measures were defeated by a proper “bi-partisan vote in committee.” The proposed measures never made it out of the committee process, Ryan said.

“We watched a publicity stunt,” Ryan said. “It failed in committee … we did our jobs.”

The Democrats’ gun-control proposals come in response to the June 12 mass shooting at a gay nightclub in Orlando that claimed 49 victims. The gunman was a Muslim who claimed allegiance to radical Islam, according to police. The shooter had been under FBI surveillance before the rampage but he was still able to purchase an assault rifle and a hand gun just prior to the massacre.

Inaction on gun control measures in the face of continued mass shootings across America make U.S. lawmakers appear weak and spineless. It only fuels the notion that the powerful National Rifle Association’s influence extends well into both the U.S. House and the U.S. Senate.

The effect of no-action by the U.S. Congress to pass meaningful gun legislation after Orlando is helpful to both former Secretary of State and Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, and New York Republican billionaire Donald Trump, Republican candidate. Clinton advocates for much stronger gun laws and outlawing private sales of military-style assault weapons. Trump, meanwhile, rallies around saving the 2nd Amendment to the U.S. Constitution which gives the right for private citizens to possess guns of all descriptions including assault rifles.

But Trump has been publicly discussing the Democratic proposals for stronger background checks and preventing those under surveillance from purchasing weapons. He has been meeting with the RNA about these issues. The NRA has endorsed Trump.

For now there is nothing Clinton or Trump can do to stop gun violence in America, but there is a lot the U.S. Congress can do, but they don’t. With an average of 90-people-a-day dying on the streets of America due to gun violence you would think lawmakers would have the guts to limit gun sales, but they don’t.

Democratic Rep. John Lewis, from Georgia, a longtime lawmaker and civil rights icon, led his colleagues in the protest. “Sometimes you have to do something out of the ordinary. Sometimes you have to make a way out of no way. We have been too quiet for too long,” Lewis said in a Real Clear Politics news story. “There comes a time when you have to say something, when you have to make a little noise, when you have to move your feet. This is the time. Now is the time to get in the way. The time to act is now. We will be silent no more.”

About the Author

Britt Nelson relocated to Costa Rica in 2011 from Florida, where he served as news editor for the Palatka Daily News, a newspaper owned by the New York Times Regional Newspaper Group (NYT-RNG) for 20 years.

Nelson served the NYT-RNG for 18 years in Tennessee, Kentucky, Virginia, North Carolina and Florida as a correspondent, reporter, staff writer, senior staff writer training new reporters, copy editor, page designer, editorial writer, editorial page editor and editorial board member.