CBC Editorial: Tuesday June 28, 2022; editorial # 8770
The following is commentary from Capitol Broadcasting Company highlighting one of the votes in Congress last week and a look at how North Carolina’s Congressional delegation voted last week.
THE ISSUE: GUN VIOLENCE -- The Senate and House has passed an amendment to the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act (S. 2938) that would establish a variety of measures intended to reduce mass shootings, including spending on behavioral health clinics, funding for school safety efforts, and restrictions on gun ownership by ex-convicts and those found by a court to be mentally ill. A supporter, Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, said the amendment sought to "create real changes in communities across this country--safer, healthier communities; stronger, more secure schools; saving lives." An opponent, Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., cited concerns that the restrictions would infringe "the constitutional right to bear arms for the innocent."
THE VOTE: The Senate vote, on June 23, was 65 yeas to 33 nays. YEAS: Burr R-NC, Tillis R-NC.
The House vote on June 24 was 217 yeas to 203 nays. YEAS: Adams D-NC, Butterfield D-NC, Manning D-NC, Ross D-NC; NAYS: Bishop R-NC, Budd R-NC; Foxx R-NC, Hudson R-NC, McHenry R-NC, Murphy R-NC, Rouzer, R-NC; NOT VOTING: Price D-NC, Cawthorn, R-NC
OUR TAKE: Not a single North Carolina Republican in the U.S. House of Representatives voted for the bill. While contentious in the halls of Congress, the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act had broad support among voters – who recognize it is a miniscule, but still important step toward addressing the distressing epidemic of mass shootings – particularly involving assault-style semiautomatic weapons – that recently included 21 deaths at a Texas elementary school and 10 at a Buffalo grocery store.
What makes the unanimous opposition of the state’s GOP House delegation of note is that its two Republican senators – particularly Sen. Thom Tillis – played key roles in developing the consensus in support of the legislation. Sticking with their fellow Republicans in the Senate isn’t as critical as cozying up to the National Rifle Association lobbyists for the state’s GOP House delegation.
It’s not hard to understand Rep. Ted Budd’s opposition. Budd, the GOP nominee for the U.S. Senate in this fall’s election, has a direct financial interest in the legislation. He sells guns for a living and this legislation cracks down on gun sellers who evade licensing requirements, requires more information in background checks and enhances the review process for gun buyers who are under 21 years of age. The legislation has added precautions to keep guns out of the hands of those who might be a danger to themselves or others.
Rep. Greg Murphy, a Republican and physician from Greenville, said he opposed it because “There are far too many unacceptable poison pills in this bill – including red flag laws which deny due process and deprive Americans of their Second Amendment rights. The legislation also needlessly singles out law-abiding adults under the age of 21 by imposing unfair waiting periods and imposing heightened scrutiny. To address mass violence, we must enforce our laws as written, address the mental health crisis in America, and prosecute violent crime – not punish law-abiding American gun owners. I swore an oath to defend the Constitution, and I will always protect your right to keep and bear arms.”
Rep. Dan Bishop, a Charlotte Republican, said Senate GOP Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is playing to the ideological middle in order to build a slim majority. “I personally don’t think that’s what America wants or needs. I think America is looking for people who will come out and explain to the people, remind them what the foundation of the Second Amendment is, why it exists, why we’re free substantially because of it,” Bishop said.
Bishop doesn’t seem to realize we are free not because masses of Americans have deadly assault-style weapons, but because we have well trained men and women in our armed forces and law enforcement agencies who use weapons under appropriate guidance and situations to defend our nation, its people and our freedoms.
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Here is a look at how North Carolina members of Congress voted on other issues over the previous week, as provided by
Targeted News Service.
House votes
INDUSTRIAL CYBERSECURITY: The House has passed the Industrial Control Systems Cybersecurity Training Act (H.R. 7777), sponsored by Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif. The bill would establish an effort at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency for training cybersecurity workers on how to protect industrial control systems from cyber attacks. Swalwell said the effort "will help strengthen small businesses, particularly those in critical infrastructure, who do not yet today have cybersecurity defense forces receiving that training." The vote, on June 21, was 368 yeas to 47 nays.
- YEAS: McHenry R-NC (10th), Foxx R-NC (5th), Hudson R-NC (8th), Murphy (NC) R-NC (3rd), Rouzer R-NC (7th), Price (NC) D-NC (4th), Budd R-NC (13th), Adams D-NC (12th), Manning D-NC (6th), Ross D-NC (2nd) NOT VOTING: Butterfield D-NC (1st)
- NAYS: Cawthorn R-NC (11th), Bishop (NC) R-NC (9th)
MENTAL HEALTH: The House has passed the Restoring Hope for Mental Health and Well-Being Act (H.R. 7666), sponsored by Rep. Frank Pallone Jr., D-N.J. The bill would reauthorize, through fiscal 2027, various mental and behavioral health programs, and expand eligibility for enrolling in opioid treatment programs. Pallone said the reauthorization "is going to help to support the mental health and well-being of millions of Americans, their families, and communities for years to come." The vote, on June 22, was 402 yeas to 20 nays
- YEAS: McHenry R-NC (10th), Foxx R-NC (5th), Butterfield D-NC (1st), Hudson R-NC (8th), Murphy (NC) R-NC (3rd), Rouzer R-NC (7th), Price (NC) D-NC (4th), Budd R-NC (13th), Adams D-NC (12th), Cawthorn R-NC (11th), Bishop (NC) R-NC (9th), Manning D-NC (6th), Ross D-NC (2nd)
HEALTH INNOVATIONS AGENCY: The House has passed the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Health Act (H.R. 5585), sponsored by Rep. Anna G. Eshoo, D-Calif., to create the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Health agency, which would, like similar existing agencies for the military and energy, fund research into novel health and medicine technologies. Eshoo said of her hopes for the agency: "Even if one deadly disease is addressed and cured, we will have succeeded. I think we are going to do better than that." The vote, on June 22, was 336 yeas to 85 nays.
- YEAS: McHenry R-NC (10th), Butterfield D-NC (1st), Hudson R-NC (8th), Murphy (NC) R-NC (3rd), Rouzer R-NC (7th), Price (NC) D-NC (4th), Budd R-NC (13th), Adams D-NC (12th), Cawthorn R-NC (11th), Manning D-NC (6th), Ross D-NC (2nd)
- NAYS: Foxx R-NC (5th), Bishop (NC) R-NC (9th)
ACTIVE SHOOTERS: The House has rejected the Active Shooter Alert Act (H.R. 6538), sponsored by Rep. David Cicilline, D-R.I. The bill would have established an Active Shooter Alert Communications Network at the Justice Department, and have the network make plans for sending alerts about active shooters by working with local and state governments. Cicilline said that by using federal resources to set up an alert system, the network "will provide access to an important tool for law enforcement departments across the country, regardless of their size or location." An opponent, Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, said state and local governments already had adequate alert systems, and a federal program would be used not for public safety, but to further "Democrat fear-mongering that guns are ever-present threats." The vote, on June 22, was 259 yeas to 162 nays, with a two-thirds majority required for approval.
- NAYS: McHenry R-NC (10th), Foxx R-NC (5th), Hudson R-NC (8th), Murphy (NC) R-NC (3rd), Rouzer R-NC (7th), Budd R-NC (13th), Cawthorn R-NC (11th), Bishop (NC) R-NC (9th)
- YEAS: Butterfield D-NC (1st), Price (NC) D-NC (4th), Adams D-NC (12th), Manning D-NC (6th), Ross D-NC (2nd)
SCHOOL MEALS: The House has passed the Keep Kids Fed Act (S. 2089), sponsored by Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H. The bill would extend waivers for federal child nutrition programs that were first issued in response to closing school classrooms in early 2020 and have been used to provide free school meals, summer meals, and subsidies for child care. A supporter, Rep. Bobby Scott, D-Va., said the extensions "would take a critical step to support child nutrition programs and prevent children from going hungry during the ongoing public health emergency." The vote, on June 23, was 376 yeas to 42 nays.
- YEAS: McHenry R-NC (10th), Foxx R-NC (5th), Butterfield D-NC (1st), Hudson R-NC (8th), Murphy (NC) R-NC (3rd), Rouzer R-NC (7th), Budd R-NC (13th), Adams D-NC (12th), Manning D-NC (6th), Ross D-NC (2nd) NOT VOTING: Price (NC) D-NC (4th)
- NAYS: Cawthorn R-NC (11th), Bishop (NC) R-NC (9th)
MENTAL HEALTH AT COLLEGES: The House has passed the Enhancing Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Through Campus Planning Act (H.R. 5407), sponsored by Rep. Susan Wild, D-Pa., to require the Education Department to promote mental health and suicide prevention plans at colleges and universities. Wild said of the need for such plans: "In the last several years, young Americans have faced unprecedented challenges resulting in a rise in mental health needs." The vote, on June 23, was 405 yeas to 16 nays.
- YEAS: McHenry R-NC (10th), Foxx R-NC (5th), Butterfield D-NC (1st), Hudson R-NC (8th), Murphy (NC) R-NC (3rd), Rouzer R-NC (7th), Budd R-NC (13th), Adams D-NC (12th), Cawthorn R-NC (11th), Manning D-NC (6th), Ross D-NC (2nd) NOT VOTING: Price (NC) D-NC (4th)
- NAYS: Bishop (NC) R-NC (9th)
COLLEGIATE DRUG USE: The House has passed the Campus Prevention and Recovery Services for Students Act (H.R. 6493), sponsored by Rep. Teresa Leger Fernandez, D-N.M. The bill would reauthorize, through fiscal 2028, the federal illicit drug and alcohol abuse prevention program for colleges and universities, and provide $15 million of annual funding for grants and other efforts to prevent alcohol and substance misuse at those campuses. Leger Fernandez said it "will help to cut the chains of addiction and unlock access to treatment and prevention for countless students across the United States." The vote, on June 23, was 371 yeas to 49 nays.
- YEAS: McHenry R-NC (10th), Foxx R-NC (5th), Butterfield D-NC (1st), Hudson R-NC (8th), Murphy (NC) R-NC (3rd), Rouzer R-NC (7th), Budd R-NC (13th), Adams D-NC (12th), Manning D-NC (6th), Ross D-NC (2nd) NOT VOTING: Price (NC) D-NC (4th)
- NAYS: Cawthorn R-NC (11th), Bishop (NC) R-NC (9th)
SEX AND DEMOGRAPHIC SURVEYS: The House has passed the LGBTQI+ Data Inclusion Act (H.R. 4176), sponsored by Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Ariz. The bill would require federal agencies to include information about non-heterosexuals in surveys that cover demographic data. Grijalva said: "The LGBTQI+ community deserves to be visible and heard so public policy can better reflect their needs." An opponent, Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., said: "Federal surveys are no place to confront the American people or their children with intrusive questions and concerns about sexual orientation or gender identity." The vote, on June 23, was 220 yeas to 201 nays.
- NAYS: McHenry R-NC (10th), Foxx R-NC (5th), Hudson R-NC (8th), Murphy (NC) R-NC (3rd), Rouzer R-NC (7th), Budd R-NC (13th), Cawthorn R-NC (11th), Bishop (NC) R-NC (9th)
- YEAS: Butterfield D-NC (1st), Adams D-NC (12th), Manning D-NC (6th), Ross D-NC (2nd)
- NOT VOTING: Price (NC) D-NC (4th)
Senate votes
CALIFORNIA JUDGE: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Ana Isabel de Alba to be a judge on the U.S. district court for the eastern district of California. de Alba has been a superior court judge in Fresno County since 2018; for a decade previous, she was a private practice lawyer. A supporter, Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., called de Alba "a dedicated, fair, and universally respected public servant, respected by her colleagues." The vote, on June 21, was 53 yeas to 45 nays.
- NAYS: Burr R-NC, Tillis R-NC
CONSUMER PRODUCTS COMMISSIONER: The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Mary Boyle to be on the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) for a 7-year term ending in fall 2025. Boyle, currently the commission's executive director, has been at the CPSC for more than a decade. A supporter, Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., said Boyle "is deeply knowledgeable about consumer product safety and the functioning of the CPSC. I have every confidence that she will be ready to lead on day one." An opponent, Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., cited "significant concerns about major administrative failures at the agency during Ms. Boyle's tenure as executive director there, including the improper disclosure of unredacted manufacturer and consumer data." The vote, on June 22, was 50 yeas to 48 nays.
- NAYS: Burr R-NC, Tillis R-NC
