The National Rifle Association was as surprised as everyone else by Donald Trump’s tweet suggesting he was softening his opposition to gun control in the wake of the Orlando terrorist attack.
Sources tell the Washington Examiner that the NRA had no prior knowledge and did not coordinate with the presumptive Republican nominee on a Wednesday morning tweet that indicated support for Democratic legislation that would ban individuals on a government no-fly list from purchasing firearms.
“We are happy to meet with Donald Trump. The NRA’s position on this issue has not changed,” Chris W. Cox, executive director of the National Rifle Association’s Institute for Legislative Action, said in a pre-written statement.
In November, Trump expressed general support for the concept that individuals deemed enough of a security risk to be placed on the no-fly list should be prohibited from buying guns. President Obama, presumptive Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton and most Democrats in Congress support this policy.
Partisan Views of Gun Control Proposals Graphiq
So Trump’s tweet caused political observers to wonder if he was tacking left on gun policy, despite his being endorsed by the NRA and regularly touting his support for the Second Amendment as compared to Clinton, who the New York businessman accuses of wanting to abolish this tenant of the Bill of Rights.
“I will be meeting with the NRA, who has endorsed me, about not allowing people on the terrorist watch list, or the no fly list, to buy guns,” Trump said in a Twitter post.
The NRA, a pro-Second Amendment advocacy group, is not preparing to drop its opposition to a Democratic proposal by Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California that would block individuals on the no-fly list from buying guns. Such a bill was previously killed by Republicans.
The NRA does support a proposal by Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn, R-Texas, that would prevent “known or suspected” terrorists from purchasing firearms — but includes language to ensure that they are granted due process rights by the authorities.
Gun Rights vs. Gun Control Support Over Time InsideGov
The NRA is reminding Members of Congress of its positions on gun control legislation. But that is being done as a part of its usual response to new calls for gun restrictions, and not as a part of some new public relations push.
There has been no special coordination with Capitol Hill offices as of Wednesday afternoon. Part of the confusion caused by Trump’s tweet was that Republican offices had not been informed of any policy changes by the NRA or the Trump campaign, but were fielding questions about it.
Here is Cox’s full statement on the issue of terrorists and whether they have the ability to get their hands on guns:
“The NRA believes that terrorists should not be allowed to purchase or possess firearms, period. Anyone on a terror watchlist who tries to buy a gun should be thoroughly investigated by the FBI and the sale delayed while the investigation is ongoing. If an investigation uncovers evidence of terrorist activity or involvement, the government should be allowed to immediately go to court, block the sale, and arrest the terrorist. At the same time, due process protections should be put in place that allow law-abiding Americans who are wrongly put on a watchlist to be removed. That has been the position of Sen. John Cornyn (R.-Tex.) and a majority of the U.S. Senate. Sadly, President Obama and his allies would prefer to play politics with this issue.”
Here is a primer on Cornyn’s proposal:
In December, 2015, Senator Cornyn offered a proposal that would give the Justice Department the ability to prevent known or suspected terrorists from purchasing weapons, which was a bipartisan proposal that received many more votes (55) than a proposal offered by Senate Democrats (45). The Cornyn proposal would have allowed the government to block firearms sale to known or suspected terrorists in a way that’s constitutional. Under the amendment he offered:
- The AG or designee has the authority to delay the transfer for up to 72 hours while relevant law enforcement agencies conduct an investigation.
- The amendment would allow a U.S. Attorney to permanently block the transfer upon a showing ‎of probable cause before a judge, who makes the determination.
- Finally, the amendment would go further than the Feinstein proposal by giving the AG or designee the authority to immediately take the prospective purchaser into custody if a judge determines there’s probable cause to deny the purchase.
