Wednesday, before departing for the sites of mass shootings, where he would refreshingly and atypically play a calming role, President Trump said "I'm looking to do background checks," while dismissing the vital push to renew a ban on military-style assault rifles.
The president has claimed to be interested in passing universal background checks before. Then the NRA intervened, and he lost the will.
As to a ban on assault weapons, Trump's excuse that there's "no political appetite" for a measure two-thirds of Americans support is circular: There's no political appetite precisely because craven Republicans like him refuse to lead.
