It is a foregone conclusion that the full House will approve the recommendation by the Militia, Police and Public Safety Committee to repeal the “one gun a month” legislation that was a signature achievement of the Wilder administration.
The question now becomes what will Senate Democrats do, especially those who sit on the committee that will get first crack at the legislation.
On one hand, Democrats in the Senate have shown an inclination to oppose some high profile GOP initiatives, rejecting both the Governor’s proposal to dedicate a portion of future reveues from off-shore drilling to transportation and his recommendation to change the timing of two year budget cycle.
On the other hand, five Democrats joined with the GOP to support one of the Health Care Freedom bills, legislation that amounts to a repudiation of the national Democratic Party’s essential position on health care.
Which stance will they take on one gun a month?
Creigh Deeds signed a pledge during the campaign vowing to support repeal.
And The Washington Post reports that Senator Majority Leader Dick Saslaw has been wary of asking Democrats to support positions that generate active opposition from the NRA in 2011.
But my sense is that urban Democrats such as Henry Marsh and Donald McEachin are unlikely to see this as a matter of sheer electoral pragmatism, but as a test of what Democrats actually stand for.
The internal divisions among Senate Democrats about the health care freedom bills and about the appropropriate response to the Governor’s declaration that he won’t accept a budget that includes any new taxes have certainly exposed weakness that the GOP is effectively exploting.
We’ll know shortly if one gun a month should be added to this list.
Leave a Reply