Claiming the “anti-gun violence movement is stronger” now than it was last year, Sen. Chris Murphy has introduced a “universal” background check bill to eliminate the imaginary “gun-show loophole.”
Why is Murphy treading the same barren ground as others who have introduced similar bills—including one that failed just last year, following a nearly 15-hour filibuster by Murphy himself? Does he think his measure is in some way different enough to succeed where others have failed? Actually, no—he doesn’t expect it to succeed at all.
“Every great winning cause is a losing cause first,” Murphy said, claiming he simply wants to continue the debate on gun control at the federal level. But what Murphy fails to acknowledge is that some losing causes continue to lose because they deserve to. Lawmakers know that criminals don’t buy their firearms at gun shows, and the public knows that laws like this won’t stop the next violent massacre. So regardless of how much “discussion” Murphy’s bill inspires, this “losing cause” is nothing more than a lost cause.
