Hi, John. Me again.

I'd figured my email this morning about Flag Day would be the only thing I'd reach out about today. Then the Supreme Court weighed in, and now our country's a more dangerous place.

In the aftermath of the horrific 2017 Las Vegas shooting that killed 60 people and injured hundreds more, the ATF moved to outlaw a device known as a "bump stock." Basically, bump stocks use the kick of a gun's recoil to pull the trigger a second time. (Then the recoil of that second shot fires the third, and so on – it's like dominoes, but lethal.) The Vegas shooter's use of a bump stock enabled him to spray more than 1000 rounds of ammunition into a crowd in a matter of minutes.

Faced with the gruesome consequences of bump stocks, the federal government wisely banned them, with broad public support.

Today, in a 6-3 ruling along partisan lines, the right-wing extremist majority on the Supreme Court – who generally seem disappointed that guns aren't more of a public safety threat – legalized bump stocks again.

To me, a device that makes killing hundreds of people easier, and which was used to carry out the deadliest mass shooting in American history, has no place on our streets.

It's just another example of conservatives attempting to wrap themselves in the flag and claim the values of our country while actively making decisions which undermine them. Whose freedoms are being protected by this decision? Mass murderers? Gun manufacturers?

Lawsuits like these are bought and paid for by Republican mega-donors like Charles Koch, who fund organizations like the NRA and the Heritage Foundation. The rulings are handed down by a SCOTUS majority appointed by Republican presidents and confirmed by Republican majorities in Congress. Rulings like these are the product of a party which is thoroughly dominated by (and which actively glorifies) special interest groups and billionaires looking out for their bottom lines.

This system of open corruption flies in the face of the values our country was founded upon. There is nothing about Koch-backed politicians confirming Koch-backed judges to issue Koch-approved opinions which resembles "government, of, by, and for the people."

America deserves better than politicians who put our families in danger in order to impress greedy, heartless special interests. Donate today to fuel my efforts to elect leaders with the spine to do what's right by answering to the people.

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Stand Tall for All,

J.D.