In a Thursday afternoon press conference, President Obama displayed extreme irritation that he will be unable to use the South Carolina murders of 9 people to diminish the second amendment.
The President took time to recognize the tragedy for what it is – a murderous rampage by a troubled young man against black people in a historic church. Then, following the progressive script to let no crisis or tragedy go to waste, he disparaged the current political climate and admitted that it would be unlikely that he could change the nation’s gun laws using these murders as a call-to-action.
It is in our power to do something about it.
I say it recognizing the politics in this town foreclose a lot of those avenues right now, but it would be wrong for us not to acknowledge it, and at some point it’s going to be important for the American people to come to grips with it and for us to be able to shift how we think about the issue of gun violence collectively.
Thursday morning, Dylann Storm Roof killed a group of people attending a prayer meeting at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Downtown Charleston, SC.
Roof had been previously arrested on two occasions for drugs and trespassing. A classmate has told reporters that Dylann was an abuser of prescription drugs like Xanax.
Just hours after the murders, Roof was captured in North Carolina by state troopers. He surrendered without incident.
While the President can’t use this tragedy to promote an anti-gun agenda, he can take some comfort as this story will likely overshadow the House vote on Obamatrade today. There will be no deluge of phone calls to representatives as the media just won’t notice the vote.
**Update – Fast-Track (TPA) has passed the House, now back to the Senate where it will likely pass.**
Poor? Get a grip.