Over the past few days a new Kossack posted two diaries using genuine concerns about elections and gun safety as cover to push false memes and promote the NRA, here and here.
We can use these kinds of diaries as opposition research. Why? Because the arguments are persuasive to some voters in red states, and may even be persuasive to some in blue districts too. That's why we should take time to understand his claims.
We need to marshal facts, and the links that support them. Not so that we can all post the same material, but so that we can draw from each other as we build an arsenal of facts to rebut false memes. To find our blind spots, the gaps in our own thinking, we must hold our best ideas up to scrutiny. That's how we find our way to better arguments.
Wayne LaPierre's Primal Scream
Four Big Holes in TexasBill's Argument
Fact No. 1 - Senate Rules - When a bill can't pass the Senate despite a 54:45 majority vote that's evidence of a broken Congress. With a 9 point margin that vote wasn't even close. It's evidence we need more filibuster reform, which Kos considers Dkos’ most important activism triumph to date, (h/t David Waldman).
Fact No. 2 - Balance of Powers - A functioning US Democracy would have a balance of power between the Congress, the Executive, and the Judiciary. We have a situation where 5 votes on the Supreme Court can effectively "edit" the constitution by changing what it means. Full stop. There's not a dagawn thing the Congress and Executive can do about it. In a functioning American Democracy, when the Congress and the Executive branches disagree with a slim SCOTUS majority we can amend the Constitution.
Fact No. 3 - Gerrymandering - The House is GOP controlled because of gerrymandered districts. This is a fact that needs to be brought to bear against the false memes in the gun diaries. See e.g. The Gerrymandered Districts of Southeastern Pennsylvania.
Fact No. 4 - State Level Politics - bipartisan support for gun control vs. ALEC controlled legislatures supporting guns everywhere laws. TexasBill reveals his bias by writing off the states that passed gun control laws, as obvious blue state wins. It's a false meme.
a. The NY Safe Act was passed with strong bipartisan support. Many people don't know that the NY state Senate is GOP-controlled, and they passed the bill with a 43-18 majority. Yes, you read that right. The Connecticut legislature passed their 2013 gun reform bill with bipartisan support too. They had been studying their gun laws since 2010 and had already begun the process of updating their gun laws before Sandy Hook happened.
b. Most "guns everywhere' bills are passed by ALEC-controlled state legislatures. We need to drill down on this issue and educate our selves and our readers so we can post facts to counter false memes. ALEC stands for the American Legislative Exchange Council, an organization that has thoroughly corrupted law-making processes across the country.
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A few strategy ideas below the fold.
Strategy Ideas
a. There is a dKos group The American Legislative Transparency Project. Follow them and read their diaries. Click through and read linked material. Think about how ALEC has infiltrated your state. Start writing about it in comments to refine your ideas.
b. We need to educate readers and register new voters, teaching them how their state has been overwhelmed by state reps that work for ALEC.
c. Adopt a state that has an ALEC-controlled state legislature and drill down into the underworld of how that state legislature functions. Start sharing what you're learning in comments and diaries. Use all feedback to refine and develop your argument further.
d. Pick a recently passed gun law in an ALEC-controlled state legislature and track its origins back to an ALEC model bill. Follow the votes. Follow the money. Write about it in comments and diaries.
d. Stand Your Ground laws have become toxic for ALEC. They had trouble raising money last year and are trying hard to distance themselves from their role in passing them. Find out which state Reps voted for SYG laws and hang that around their necks this election cycle.
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Do your state representatives stand for ALEC or for you?
Educate Yourself, Get Your Facts in Order
Gun law is vast and complex. Here are just a few ideas to get started arming yourself with facts about the law. (pun intended)
e. The Law Center for the Prevention of Gun Violence is a good place to start. Forget about their letter grades, and just get started. In your diary queue, prepare a comment or diary length post summarizing gun laws in your state. Or choose one policy issue they cover and drill down on that. Start posting some variation of it whenever it's appropriate to support the diary author or to rebut false memes. They do occasionally miss things, but don't worry. Dkos readers will let you know.
f. The vast majority of gun fatalities involve hand guns. Begin you journey toward law-literacy by learning who qualifies to carry concealed handguns in your state: Handgun Law.
g. Keep track of gun lawsuits percolating up through the lower courts. This is where Second Amendment jurisprudence is developing. The vast majority of gun laws are being upheld.
h. Review the arguments in Amicus Briefs and SCOTUS petitions. Read briefs supporting the plaintiffs and the defense to better understand the dimensions of a constitutional challenge. Many issues presented in a petition have more than two sides.
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Keep the Big Picture in Mind
The simple fact is that hundreds of laws have been challenged and upheld in the lower Courts post-Heller. For nearly six years since Heller only a few laws have been struck down. See e.g. Chicago, Illinois. Many pages in Heller were devoted to explaining that many forms of gun control are constitutional. The NRA would like you to forget that. The Supreme Court has had many opportunities to further expand gun rights into the public sphere and they have thus far declined to do so. Don't let anyone use NRA propaganda to convince you otherwise.
The NRA still wants people to think they have the power to sway elections and prevent good laws from passing. Their influence is waning due to several factors.
- Voters are becoming informed about gun law.
- Third-party organizations with money are entering the fight to hold elected representatives accountable for their votes.
- The NRA is being attacked from the far right by organizations like Gun Owners of America and The Second Amendment Foundation.
We have lots of work to do! Rock on!
UPDATE 3:17 PM PT: Hunter has a diary up, reporting another example of NRA propaganda. They''re using Michelle Obama tweeting her support for the Bring Back Our Girls campaign to imply that Michelle Obama is weak, that being unarmed means she is weak on terrorism.
NRA comes out against #BringBackOurGirls Campaign
Tyrants and terrorists, like murderers, rapists and robbers, understand only one thing: force. They laugh at, and are emboldened by, weakness. That is why it is important to preserve and promote the right to keep and bear arms. An armed citizenry deters violence.
UPDATE Tue May 20, 2014 at 12:46 PM PT: For those 5 people who are new to politics and chose the last option in the poll. I want to welcome you to Daily Kos. And I added this sentence to the diary at the end of the Introduction. "ALEC stands for the American Legislative Exchange Council, an organization that has thoroughly corrupted law-making processes across the country."
Thank you everybody for the rec list and for bringing your best ideas to the table. Kogs will join together to expose ALEC!