House Republicans have been ordered by their leadership. after being told to do so by the NRA to vote against two gun bills.
Andrew Solender of Axios tweeted the marching orders to House Republicans:
The whip notice notes opposition to the bills from gun groups: pic.twitter.com/NSDeiWE5o8
— Andrew Solender (@AndrewSolender) June 7, 2022
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Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) recently pointed out that the NRA has lost much of its financial influence, but where it still holds power over Republicans is in the ability to make Republican voters angry.
House members are very vulnerable to pressure from interest groups, so the memos put out by Scalise were marching orders/threats. If any Republican who is running for reelection votes for bills that could save lives by reducing gun violence, they will have to deal with the gun groups riling up their voters.
Both of the House bills are expected to pass and then get rejected by the Senate because ten Republicans will not support banning high capacity magazines, raising the age to buy an assault weapon, and other common-sense measures.
The NRA is on the decline, but it still has enough influence to give marching orders that House Republicans will follow even after hearing firsthand from witnesses about what an AR-15 did to 19 Uvalde children.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
