Another day in the Empire of Michifascistan.
People are SHOCKED that an apparent "loophole" in the ALEC/NRA-concocted gun law rammed into law by the damn-the-torpedoes lame-duck Republicans would prevent any publicly-owned and operated facilities such as schools from taking any steps to prevent gun nuts from bringing guns onto the premises.
LANSING -- An apparent loophole in a gun bill passed during the Legislature's lame duck session means public schools would not be able to stop licensed gun holders with advanced training from carrying guns on school property in Michigan.
Of course the Republifascists are champions in this kind of disingenous horseshit and of course in the aftermath of Sandy Hook they are discreetly trying to tiptoe away ever so quietly from the law for at least a few weeks until the nonstop media coverage of child funerals passes from the screen, at which time their trained poodle Snyder can sign it.
But it is kind of surprising and even a bit annoying to see Gretchen Whitmer, who I am becoming more and more a monstrous fan of, allowing ALEC and the NRA some cover by actually buying into the bullshit that the loopholes are "mistakes":
Senate Minority Leader Gretchen Whitmer said the issue demonstrates that the GOP majority rushed too many bills through too quickly. The Legislature passed 282 bills during lame duck, according to Wurfel.
"It's very clear that the Republicans in their zest for their ideological goals, went so fast that they made a lot of mistakes," Whitmer, D-East Lansing, said today.
"They simply cut out public debate and their legislation lacks because of it. They really made huge errors," she said.
No, Gretchen, they didn't make any mistakes. THE BILLS WERE WRITTEN BY ALEC AND THE NRA. They fully intended to have all those loopholes in there.
The gun nuts want EVERYBODY PACKING HEAT EVERYWHERE in American society. They particularly do NOT want any publicly owned or operated facility to have any authority to stop anybody from taking guns anywhere.
The right-wing particularly enjoys when shoot-em-up incidents happen in public schools, because it adds fuel to their campaign that public schools are inherently unsafe, that no sane parents would send their kids there, and they must be defunded and dismantled.
So getting more guns into public schools is a BIG PRIORITY for the right wing -- it is not some utterly unforeseen "loophole" they never dreamed could happen. It is one of the main points of the legislation.
Quit giving the GOP and their ALEC/NRA puppetmasters the cover of blissful ignorance. Don't bother being polite and diplomatic. They know what they're doing. CALL THEM ON IT.