NotedDC — Democrats struggle to turn outrage into action
Each week following a mass shooting seems like Groundhog Day in Washington. Both parties offer thoughts and prayers, Democrats call for gun control legislation and Republicans argue that attention should be focused on the tragedy, not reforming gun laws. A Morning Consult/POLITICO poll conducted in the wake of Tuesday’s shooting in Uvalde, Texas, indicates broad support for policy changes. Eighty-eight percent support requiring background checks on all gun sales, 75
Read MoreFive things to know as NRA presses ahead with Texas summit
The National Rifle Association (NRA) is moving forward with its annual summit in Houston, Texas, this weekend despite calls for the event to be canceled. The pro-gun group’s three-day convention, which starts Friday, is located less than 300 miles from the site of the deadliest school shooting in nearly a decade. On Tuesday, an 18-year-old shot and killed 19 children and two adults at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas using guns he bought just days before. The NRA, the most powerful gun rights group in the nation, has lobbied GOP lawmakers to oppose bills to ex
Read MoreEquilibrium/Sustainability — Fighting illegal gold mining in the Amazon
A young Amazonian woman won a prestigious international prize yesterday for her work challenging gold miners digging up her people’s lands. When gold miners began stripping the ancestral forests of the Cofán people with bulldozers, Alexandra Narvaez formed a “forest patrol” to confront them, according to a statement from the Goldman Environmental Prize. With drones, camera traps and stealthy patrols, they documented enough illegal a
Read MoreBiden has limited options, but there are some things he can do on guns
Even though President Biden has nearly exhausted his options to confront gun violence with executive action, advocates and allies say there are a few steps he could take in the wake of horrifying mass shootings in Buffalo and Texas. The limited possibilities include stepping up enforcement of existing laws or looking to health agencies to address gun violence as a public health issue. The administration and advocates alike say such steps are minimal compared to the actions Congress could take through legislation to reduce gun violence. Biden has pre
Read MoreMass shootings highlight our failure in mental health
We missed another killer. Twice. It’s still unclear what motivated the shooter in Uvalde, Texas, but the gruesome shootings in Buffalo, N.Y., allegedly by Payton Gendron, spotlight our ongoing failures to identify potentially dangerous and violent individuals. The Buffalo killings also remind us of how extremism and racism stain our society. While the facts behind the Uvalde shooting still come in, let’s deconstruct what we know of the Buffalo case — and others — that illustrate all-too-common missteps and shortfalls. I have advised many senior leaders and attorneys over
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