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Chalk this up to the Trump Effect: Ohio Republican Sen. Rob Portman is all of a sudden open to the idea of preventing people on the terrorist watch list from being able to legally buy guns—and he seems to have conveniently forgotten that he voted against it just six months ago.
Sen. Rob Portman, meanwhile, in a conference call with reporters, said anyone on the terrorist watch list should be barred from buying weapons. The statement appeared in conflict with a vote he made in December. At the time, Portman said he was concerned that people would be erroneously put on the list.Portman opposed an amendment introduced by Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-California, which would allow the U.S. attorney general to block the sale or transfer of a gun or explosive to a suspected or known terrorist. The amendment failed. […]
Portman said his position remains consistent with what it was in December, though he appeared confused about whether Feinstein's amendment applied to the more limited "no-fly list" or the larger "terrorism watch list."
"I do support having it be the broader list," he said, saying the Senate would have to pass something with due process that would allow those wrongfully put on the list to appeal.
That's indeed a new position for the "confused" Portman. Apparently he doesn't know what he was voting on back in December. Maybe that's because he was just voting as his leadership told him to back then. That's almost as bad as his Wisconsin colleague, Ron Johnson, not knowing what current law actually is. Actually, it's worse. Because frankly, no one really expects Johnson to know or understand much of anything. Portman, however, doesn't get the benefit of those low expectations. He should know better—regardless of whether or not it’s an election year.
Please give $3 to help Ted Strickland send Rob Portman packing.
