One of the more minor side effects of Democrats refusing to mention any position they can't immediately pass into law is that it leaves a lot of space for a particularly current and toxic species of Republican.
Liberal sources everywhere are dedicating gallons of ink to Mayor Michael Bloomberg's stand on gun control. It's great that Mayor Bloomberg is taking a principled position on this issue. But if Democratic leadership weren't terrified of using the word "gun", the headlines would read "Republican joins Democrats calling for gun control."
By shying away, we don't just hurt progress on this issue or leave ourselves looking feeble. We give moderate Republicans, who never learned the 'avoid popular positions if you don't have votes for them in Congress' lesson, an enormous voice, and leave countless independents and more than a few Democrats thinking that Michael Bloomberg is what a strong, principled, moderate voice in politics looks like - Republican anti-government billionaires who aren't quite as crazy as the other Republican anti-government billionaires. The ban-assault-weapons poll this week: 63%-34%. Come on.
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