Daily Clips: January 5th, 2015
Rubio, justifying his missed votes, says, "We’re not going to fix America with senators and congressmen.”
— Shane Goldmacher (@ShaneGoldmacher) January 5, 2016
Good grief, what a ridiculous statement from Rubio. Look, I understand he doesn’t want to be seen as the “establishment” candidate, but implying that America can’t be fixed by federal representatives is disingenuous and delusional. As EJ Dionne wrote yesterday, Rubio’s attempt to label himself as both an “outsider” and a “senator” appears to be a politically expedient way of “appeasing everyone” and “creating the impression, as an Iowa pastor told my Post colleagues Sean Sullivan and David Fahrenthold last month, that you’re a candidate ‘talking out of both sides of his mouth.'”
And on that note: 51 percent of Trump’s supporters say they’re certain to back him, while only 26 percent of Rubio’s supporters do.
Fear of small terror: David Brooks’ latest column highlights how, “These days, we all live at risk of random terror, whether we are in Paris, San Bernardino, Boston or Fort Hood. Many of us have had brushes with these sorts of attacks. It’s partly randomness that determines whether you happen to be in the wrong spot at the wrong time.”
He’s not wrong. The conclusions he draws are also quite sound (“Openness is worth the occasional horror fanatics cause”). Unfortunately, Republicans like Brooks only seem to be moved by terror that is provoked by terrorists. But he fails to mention in this article any mention of gun violence. You know, that form of “small terror” that hits America every single day.
Most Americans support background checks: “Consistently, at least 70 percent of Americans said they favor background checks.” A useful talking point for your conversations about gun violence prevention.
