Can U.S. Senate pass gun background checks?

Credit: The White House 

A tweet by any other name is just a tweet? Not says Chicago’s new mayor, Lori Lightfoot after a tweet by Ivanka Trump, as she confronted President Trump’s daughter, about Chicago violence, in contrast to the tragic mass murders in Texas, and Ohio, a move that many see as another diversionary tactic from her father’s playbook.

While it’s safe to assume that she is a “Daddy’s Girl” in protective mode, it also shows that Lightfoot unfortunately fell for the diversionary tactic, and has to remember, say administration critics, that none of the Trump family can be trusted.

In a weekend of horrors that claimed the lives of over 25 people and over 20 wounded, it is revealing, as it was the case with the president’s words after visiting El Paso and Dayton, that the race to retain the White House is in full throttle and nothing else really matters, but the fear that independent voters might vote with the Dems.

For those that might have missed the tweet, here it is: “With 7 dead and 52 wounded near a playground in the Windy City - and little national outrage or media coverage - we mustn’t become numb to the violence faced by inner city communities every day,” she wrote, misstating facts and leaving her open to Lightfoot’s scathing remarks, noted the Chicago Sun-Times.

The mayor was quick to point out the facts: the shootings were not in one incident near a playground, a park, and the numbers were spread out over the weekend.

As most in the media have noted, the truth does not matter, when it comes to the Trump family, but appealing to the Republican base does, and that’s all that matters.

The run up to November is nothing to be risked, and the Trumps are getting nervous, and what better way than to highlight violence, black violence, in a town with its only second black mayor, redolent of the attacks on Rep. Elijah Cummings, and the city of Baltimore.

To stem the tide, so to speak, Trump’s office released a statement, that did a “circle back” with just a soupcon of regret --- “A White House statement released on Tuesday night acknowledged that to an extent: Ivanka Trump’s quote was “misleading in implying that all of the shooting incidents occurred in one location,” while underscoring the larger point that seven were shot to death, even if not a mass killing.”

In an exchange with the local dean of political reporters, Fran Spielman, of the Times, was this:

“Ivanka Trump has not signaled if she is using her considerable clout to influence the president to take stronger action on guns.

I asked, “Is there anything Ivanka Trump wants to suggest for Chicago?

The reply from the White House official: “She wants to ensure that we as a country do not become numb to gun violence that occurs in our inner cities on a daily basis.

“When she (met) with Mayor Lightfoot, they had a productive and positive meeting covering issues ranging from workforce development and vocational education to economic revitalization. They also discussed at length criminal justice and parole reform as well as crime prevention and looks forward to collaborating on these issues.”

Their anxiety about all of the negative publicity surrounding the shootings, but also the blowback after the careless remarks of the president that don’t focus on the tragedy, but himself, as a recent CNN report from Anderson Cooper showed.

Certainly any attempt at background checks has been curtailed by the Senate, and in a statement from Mitch McConnell, he said that they would not come back from recess, to discuss a bill, despite the urging of Democratic leaders, Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer.

Then he backtracked in a statement, that some see as disingenuous, that he was “willing to consider background checks for gun buyers,” to a Kentucky radio station,WHAS radio, and even further, ‘what we can’t do is fail to pass something.”

Close on the heels of these remarks is the NRA who has said, in no uncertain terms, that they will not support a bill that increased background checks, nor is there support from the Senate, despite some reports from the White House, that the “red flag” laws the president might want to consider, in light of the early warning signs that most of the perpetrators have shown to have, might be considered.

It’s been firmly established that the NRA played a key role in the election of Donald Trump and that in a sense, he owes them, when he told reporters, “We’ll see where the NRA is,” adding that there are “good people” in the NRA, and “I have a great relationship with the NRA.”

Meanwhile, the killing fields continue, and the lack of early intervention has been established by psychologists, yet the public will has not always been behind it, and school officials, perhaps cowed by lawsuits over privacy concerns have muted any action on that.

Dayton shooter Connor Betts had this in his background, and “In interviews with The Associated Press, two former high school classmates claimed the shooter was once suspended for compiling a "hit list" of those he wanted to kill and a "rape list" of girls he wanted to sexually assault.”

There was no response from the Bellbrook High School, Betts attended, when AP made their report.

Surrounding the tragedy has not been solely the drumbeat of criticism after Trump’s self-serving remarks, the now beleaguered president has some damage control to do, and his spin, and outlandish statements saying that the Texas shooter was a fan of Democrat, Elizabeth Warren, and Bernie Sanders, an Independent, and, for good measure, a member of Antifa, are not indicative of a present reality.

NRA head Wayne LaPierre “has not detailed his discussions with Trump this week, he said in a statement that "the NRA opposes any legislation that unfairly infringes upon the rights of law-abiding citizens."

This statement could be read in a myriad of ways, but not one that might be supportive of increased background checks, or show much hope to slow the steady growth of mass murders in the United States.