There’s only one story in America this week. The Sunday shows will devote (nearly) their full attention to the massacre at Robb Elementary in Uvalde, with the Senate’s most outspoken gun-control activist the star guest. Chris Murphy will update “This Week” and “Face the Nation” about the prospects of a deal in Congress on … something. Universal background checks? Maybe. Red-flag laws? Probably not. But hopeful noises are being made by centrists:
Manchin said that the energy in the Senate feels different than a decade ago, when he first devoted himself to extending background checks to gun shows and internet transactions after a shooter killed 20 children and six adults at an elementary school in Newtown, Conn.
“I’ve never been more encouraged by more activity from my Republican colleagues and Democrat colleagues,” Manchin said. “I can remember after Sandy Hook, I didn’t have anybody coming to the table.”
Of course, Manchin’s said such things before:
Fwiw, Manchin told me this quote just over a week after Parkland in 2018:
“It feels a little different. I’ve got grandchildren also in the school systems, and I understand the concerns that every parent and grandparent has.” https://t.co/DghnLgs9Rh
— Vaughn Hillyard (@VaughnHillyard) May 26, 2022
Murphy is sniffing around for 10 Republicans willing to support any sort of new restriction on guns. He’ll reveal this morning if he thinks he’s found them. Other Democrats are also booked to pitch viewers on the case for regulations: Cory Booker will chat with “Meet the Press” while the number two Democrat in the Senate, Dick Durbin, speaks with “State of the Union.” And Val Demings, Marco Rubio’s opponent in Florida, will try to gain some traction in her race by pounding the table on “Face the Nation.” Demings also happens to be a former police chief; I suspect she’ll have some unkind things to say about the Uvalde PD’s performance in a moment of crisis.
Republicans are scarce this morning, as you might expect, but Dan Crenshaw is game to make the case for gun rights on “State of the Union.” Finally, Mo Brooks will talk to “Fox News Sunday” about his upcoming Senate runoff in Alabama with Katie Britt. Does he expect Trump to re-endorse him after unendorsing him or is he expecting to be shanked again when Trump endorses Britt? The full line-up is at the AP.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member