basquebromance
Diamond Member
- Nov 26, 2015
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David Hogg visited Cornyn's office, and the Senator refused to meet with him. that tells you all you need to know about the reality here
www.politico.com
excerpts:
John Cornyn, tapped as McConnell’s emissary to bipartisan negotiations on gun legislation, is feeling the pressure after years of congressional failure to get a bill done. If the Senate can’t agree on a legislative response after the killings in Uvalde, Cornyn said, “it will be embarrassing.”
“It would feed the narrative that we can’t get things done in the public interest,” the 70-year-old former state attorney general told POLITICO. “I don’t believe that narrative, I believe we can get a bipartisan deal done in the public interest.”
Cornyn’s in a unique position to get the votes on guns, not just because of the latest tragedy that struck his home state. He’s previously teamed up with Democrats on narrow background checks legislation — the most substantive gun bill to clear Congress in the last decade. Not to mention that the former whip wields major influence in a GOP conference where he’s widely viewed as a potential successor to McConnell.
A successful gun vote could boost Cornyn in any future race for Senate GOP leader. Yet the risks of failure are even clearer — and whatever bipartisan agreement that won’t go too far for Cornyn may not be enough for Democratic negotiators. Cornyn, who assured one home-state radio host this week that 2nd Amendment restrictions are “not gonna happen,” voted against expanding background checks in 2013
“He’s critical,” said Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.), a frequent negotiating partner of Cornyn’s. “His credibility as a conservative, as a Republican caucus leader, as a law enforcement leader from Texas … gives him the credibility to negotiate a balance between robust investment in mental health and some progress around gun safety.”
“When McConnell asked me to be sort of the point person on this, I thought to myself ‘well, this is like Joe Biden appointing Kamala border czar,’ I accepted the responsibility with a little trepidation,” he recalled.
“He’s earnestly at the table,” Murphy said in an interview. “He’s made clear there’s only so far that he’s willing to go. But so far, the things on the table are incremental but significant changes.”
“I’m not talking about restricting the rights of law-abiding citizens under the Second Amendment,” Cornyn said. “I’m talking about identifying people with criminal and mental health problems that are a threat to themselves and others.”
Cory Booker, who worked with Cornyn on criminal justice reform, said he’s “hopeful” a deal will come to fruition but predicted that any agreement won’t be “to the level of what we are going to need to end the daily carnage.”
Asked whether becoming GOP leader factors into his thinking, Cornyn replied: “That’s a long way off, and who knows whether it’s ever going to happen.” But he added that “if you’re not in the Senate in order to make a difference and make tough, politically challenging decisions which you know are the right thing to do, then you need to find another job.”
The president, in fact, also sees Cornyn as critical; the senator’s staff is in touch with the White House on guns and Biden recently described the Texan as a “rational Republican.”
“People are going to say what they’re going to say,” Cornyn said. “But I’m happy to be part of the coalition of the rational.”
The Texas conservative turned Biden-approved ‘rational Republican’ on guns
If the Senate can’t agree on a legislative response after the killings in Uvalde, Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) said, “it will be embarrassing.”
www.politico.com
excerpts:
John Cornyn, tapped as McConnell’s emissary to bipartisan negotiations on gun legislation, is feeling the pressure after years of congressional failure to get a bill done. If the Senate can’t agree on a legislative response after the killings in Uvalde, Cornyn said, “it will be embarrassing.”
“It would feed the narrative that we can’t get things done in the public interest,” the 70-year-old former state attorney general told POLITICO. “I don’t believe that narrative, I believe we can get a bipartisan deal done in the public interest.”
Cornyn’s in a unique position to get the votes on guns, not just because of the latest tragedy that struck his home state. He’s previously teamed up with Democrats on narrow background checks legislation — the most substantive gun bill to clear Congress in the last decade. Not to mention that the former whip wields major influence in a GOP conference where he’s widely viewed as a potential successor to McConnell.
A successful gun vote could boost Cornyn in any future race for Senate GOP leader. Yet the risks of failure are even clearer — and whatever bipartisan agreement that won’t go too far for Cornyn may not be enough for Democratic negotiators. Cornyn, who assured one home-state radio host this week that 2nd Amendment restrictions are “not gonna happen,” voted against expanding background checks in 2013
“He’s critical,” said Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.), a frequent negotiating partner of Cornyn’s. “His credibility as a conservative, as a Republican caucus leader, as a law enforcement leader from Texas … gives him the credibility to negotiate a balance between robust investment in mental health and some progress around gun safety.”
“When McConnell asked me to be sort of the point person on this, I thought to myself ‘well, this is like Joe Biden appointing Kamala border czar,’ I accepted the responsibility with a little trepidation,” he recalled.
“He’s earnestly at the table,” Murphy said in an interview. “He’s made clear there’s only so far that he’s willing to go. But so far, the things on the table are incremental but significant changes.”
“I’m not talking about restricting the rights of law-abiding citizens under the Second Amendment,” Cornyn said. “I’m talking about identifying people with criminal and mental health problems that are a threat to themselves and others.”
Cory Booker, who worked with Cornyn on criminal justice reform, said he’s “hopeful” a deal will come to fruition but predicted that any agreement won’t be “to the level of what we are going to need to end the daily carnage.”
Asked whether becoming GOP leader factors into his thinking, Cornyn replied: “That’s a long way off, and who knows whether it’s ever going to happen.” But he added that “if you’re not in the Senate in order to make a difference and make tough, politically challenging decisions which you know are the right thing to do, then you need to find another job.”
The president, in fact, also sees Cornyn as critical; the senator’s staff is in touch with the White House on guns and Biden recently described the Texan as a “rational Republican.”
“People are going to say what they’re going to say,” Cornyn said. “But I’m happy to be part of the coalition of the rational.”
