Rethugs Practice Under Heavy Security

Roughly eleven months after the shooting at an Alexandria, VA baseball field where Rethuglican House Majority Whip Steve Scalise was wounded by a gunman, Rethuglican members of Congress gathered for softball practice this morning, heavily guarded by Capitol and local police. You can be certain that each and every one of these self-important, cynical pols got significant campaign money from the National Rifle Rampage Association. The key point is that they're "heavily guarded," in a security bubble that the vast majority of Americans don't have the luxury of having. They'll continue to ignore public sentiment that background checks need to be strengthened, that sales of guns to kids under 21 needs to end, and that other control measures need to be taken (including banning assault style weapons -- 68%).

Here's hoping that no violence comes to these sheltered SOBs, but that the 2018 ballot will send them back to the minors.

Today's Cartoon Twofer: Republicans' Un-Civil Rights

Never has a political party been so deserving of extinction.

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(Rob Rogers, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)


(Nick Anderson, Houston Chronicle)

Today's Cartoon Twofer -- Armed Kooks And Their Protectors

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(Mike Luckovich, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

 
(Jim Morin, Miami Herald)

The National Gun Manufacturers Rifle Association, the world's most evil advocacy organization, and their Republican protectors and enablers need to be told this every day by the vast majority of Americans who support the most basic, common sense reform -- tightening up background checks on gun purchasers.

Sen. Kelly Ayotte Feels The Burn

New Hampshire freshman Rethuglican Sen. Kelly "Deer in the Headlights" Ayotte -- the junior third leg of the Grampypants McCain and Huckleberry Closetcase Graham stool (yes, in both senses of the word) -- had a town hall meeting in Warren, NH, the other day and got first hand evidence of her tanking popularity, thanks to her cowardly vote against the gun background check legislation.  And in the process, a new Hackwhackers hero was born:

At the town hall in Warren on Tuesday, the format of pre-selected question topics angered Eric Knuffke, 74, who stood up and asked to be heard after raising his hand failed to get him recognized.

The senator resisted. “I do every town hall meeting this way and have a process,” [Sen. Kelly] Ayotte told him.

“You like to regulate [the questions you take], but you don’t want to regulate guns?” he shouted. The room burst into applause.

 If we're ever in Warren, we'd like to buy Mr. Knuffke a drink.

 (Photo: "Constituent closing fast... must freeze..."   Getty Images)

Today's Cartoons - Why We Can't Have Nice Things

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(Top:  Drew Sheneman;  bottom:  Pat Oliphant;  both via gocomics.com)

Gun Control Amendments Going Down To Defeat

The assault weapons ban lost, as expected.  But even the modest background check amendment couldn't make it past the Rethuglican (and some pseudo-Dems) filibuster threat.  Thanks again, Harry Reid.  Sad day for America.

UPDATE:  Special shame on the four "Dems" who voted no:  Baucus, Begich, Heitkamp, and Pryor (Reid voted no so that the bill could be brought up later).  Primary them.  Big kudos to the four Republicans who voted yes:  Collins, Kirk, McCain, and Toomey.

Soulless Rethugs On Display

By now, most people have seen the revolting video of Arizona Sen. and bitter pus-bag John "Grumpypants" McNasty's town hall put down of Caren Teves, the mother of an Aurora, CO shooting victim. It's a tone-deaf, thoroughly cruel piece of business.

Now we learn that the victim's father wrote letters to both McNasty and his Rethug counterpart, Sen. Jeff "The" Flake concerning the importance of sensible gun control/safety laws. Here's what transpired:

"A few weeks ago, Tom Teves, of Phoenix, sent his senators a letter. His 24-year-old son, Alex, was killed last year in the Aurora, Colo. movie theater massacre, and he wanted to tell them Alex’s story and encourage them to take action on guns.

What he got in response, he said, were cold, impersonal form letters from Sens. John McCain and Jeff Flake, both Republicans. Neither of the letters even addressed the Colorado massacre. In fact, they brought up an entirely different shooting, the schoolhouse killings in Newtown, Conn., and mentioned each senator’s ongoing support of the Second Amendment. It was like Alex Teves’ death hadn’t gotten through to the senators or their staffs."

Both Grumpypants and Jeff The Flake should be ashamed of themselves. Sadly for the rest of us, they are shameless, soulless, and without the moral compass that most human beings have. Maybe that's the key to being a Rethuglican politician.