Politics
Granderson: Can the Chiefs parade shooting inspire enough GOP voters to make a change?
You know why this country has a problem with mass shootings? For the same reason we’re likely to have an octogenarian president during the next administration.
Both President Biden and former President Trump are old — as in “both men were alive for the start of the first Arab-Israeli war” kind of old. Polls show their age is a concern for many Americans. Primary election results so far show that isn’t swaying many people’s votes.
Opinion Columnist
LZ Granderson
LZ Granderson writes about culture, politics, sports and navigating life in America.
This contradiction illustrates why it’s nearly impossible to do anything of significance about our gun problem.
On Super Bowl Sunday, a 7-year-old boy was critically wounded during a shootout at a megachurch in Houston. On Wednesday, the parade for the Kansas City Chiefs’ victory turned into another one of our gun nightmares: one dead, more than 20 injured.
Polls show most Americans want more laws to prevent mass shootings. Primary election results so far show that isn’t swaying many people’s votes.
A critical mass of conservatives get behind any candidate endorsed by the National Rifle Assn. out of fear that Democrats are trying to take everyone’s guns away — which, by the way, is not happening. What’s really going on is a fear-driven and irrational arms race. Americans are amassing assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, which no civilian should own and which inevitably fall into the wrong hands. Now every corner of American life is a potential site for a mass shooting: places of worship, elementary schools, the mall, any public gathering.
In a Shakespearean twist, one of the few places you won’t find a gun is an NRA convention. Members accept a weapons ban when big names like Trump make appearances. When the Secret Service said, “no guns allowed,” the lobby group didn’t declare the policy an attack on 2nd Amendment rights. The organizers said OK.
The NRA knows what the polls say. Most Americans, including most Republicans and most owners of firearms, have long supported common-sense gun laws that would prevent many mass shootings. But the gun lobby cares more about how people vote than about how they respond to polls. Republicans aren’t concerned enough to favor sane candidates when there are pro-gun absolutists on the ballot.
It’s not as if there aren’t Republicans in favor of common-sense gun laws. They just don’t make it to November.
You know who does?
The kind of candidate that likes to hold guns in campaign ads. The kind who would cut funding for mental health programs and then lament the country’s problem with mental health after a mass shooting. The politicians who make it to November are the ones who ensure weapons of war are easy to buy. Those politicians get real quiet when the weapons they endorsed are used to gun down children.
Out of concern for public safety, we have decided to hold pharmaceutical companies accountable for the opioid crisis, and yet we do not do the same for gun manufacturers. Out of concern for public safety, we have decided to limit the number of over-the-counter allergy pills a person can buy, but we sell an endless supply of bullets to anyone.
We have accepted having our private parts inspected at the airport because one terrorist attempted to ignite explosives embedded in his underwear 15 years ago. And yet politicians pretend that it’s difficult to keep guns out of the hands of domestic abusers.
How exactly do Republican leaders propose to keep us safe, when they are abdicating their responsibility? They pretend that we’d be better off if more of the folks drinking in bars had guns and if more people who walked into churches were armed to kill.
That fear-driven arms race has gone so far beyond reason that there’s a mass delusion we can shoot our way out of the epidemic of mass shootings. Any proposal that might actually work? Well, the gun lobby bats it away as an untenable threat to 2nd Amendment rights. That’s how the thinking goes.
If we can call that “thinking.”
More than 200 Republicans voted against raising the age limit to buy an assault rifle from 18 to 21. Apparently, there’s a sweet spot where people are too young to drink beer but old enough to purchase military weapons.
Much like our electoral habit of voting for the presidential candidates we say are too old for the job, in the wake of mass shootings we continue to seek answers from elected officials who tell us there’s nothing they can do.
We can’t send our kids to school, the movies or even a Super Bowl parade flooded with more than 800 law enforcement officers without worrying about guns. That’s not safer living. That’s living under siege. Public shootings are part of our lives because while most Americans say we are concerned about guns, conservatives are not concerned enough to vote for Republicans who want to do something about it.
The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 that President Trump could fire independent regulators for any reason. But the justices carved out an exception for the Federal Reserve, preventing the immediate removal of Lisa D. Cook, a Federal Reserve governor.
Politics
Emotion and feelings: How Democratic Socialists’ congressional insurgency could come back to bite them
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
Democratic Socialists of America are on the charge, running hot off their wins in the New York Democratic primaries last week. Their victories in multiple Congressional seats – felling both Reps. Adriano Espaillat, D-N.Y., and Dan Goldman, D-N.Y. – signals that the party is ready to move on from the same old, same old.
Espaillat chaired the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. Goldman was a key House staffer during the first impeachment of President Donald Trump.
“Even Dan Goldman’s not good enough for them,” said House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, on Fox. “That is how radical it’s become.”
Some moderate Democrats are trying to distance themselves from the left.
MAMDANI-BACKED SOCIALISTS LOOK TO TAKE NEW YORK PLAYBOOK NATIONWIDE AFTER PRIMARY VICTORIES
The left flank of the Democratic Party has surged to the top of the nation’s most hotly-contested primaries. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
“That’s not the same brand of politics that we have. We’re not those type of Democrats,” said Rep. Tom Suozzi, D-N.Y., who represents a battleground district.
“There’s a new group of Democratic Socialists who are socialists who are not commonsense Democrats. Who are not interested in getting things done. They’re interested in throwing bombs. Not actually solving problems,” said Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-N.J.
LURCHING LEFT: MAMDANI-BACKED CANDIDATES OUST ESTABLISHMENT DEMOCRATS
Some Democrats are worried how far left candidates command more attention than those in the middle. Rep. Kristen McDonald Rivet, D-Mich., worries that the outsized attention garnered by the left sends the wrong impression to voters.
“What they don’t want is divisiveness. They don’t want screaming and yelling,” said McDonald Rivet.
Mainstream Democrats feel trapped in the middle as the left – specifically the New York City left – wields an outsized media and political megaphone.
“Those candidates would not have won in Virginia where I live,” said Rep. Suhas Subramanyam, D-Va.
Rep. Tom Suozzi, D-N.Y., is among the moderate Democrats trying to distance themselves from the party’s insurgent wing. (Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Republicans believe they are primed to nationalize the midterms. Republicans can do that by highlighting the extreme views of Democratic Socialists who captured primary victories in New York City. The GOP wants to portray their opponents as veering left.
“These are board-certified communists, right?” asked Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan. “They want no police. They want no private property.”
President Trump capitalized on the Democratic outcomes in his home city.
“The Democrat party is in big trouble because this isn’t stopping with New York,” he forecast.
VICTORIES BY MAMDANI-BACKED CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATES SPOTLIGHTS GROWING RIFT IN DEMOCRATIC PARTY
This shakeup has progressive leaders demanding transformation at the top.
“You’re going to see, I think, people voting for new leadership and to change their representation,” said Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.
The Democratic Party tapped Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., to deliver their official response to President Trump’s 2025 State of the Union speech. Slotkin is a moderate who won in a battleground race in 2024 – even as the President prevailed in the Wolverine State. But during an appearance on SiriusXM, Slotkin insists on a Democratic Party management switch.
“If people can’t understand that the game has fundamentally changed and they can’t adapt, then they need to let others,” said Slotkin. “The old models do not work for people.”
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., is perceived by Republicans as vulnerable after his preferred candidates failed in their congressional primaries. (Roberto Schmidt/Getty Images)
Republicans believe House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., is vulnerable after the DSA elected their candidates over his preferred picks in New York City.
“I think Hakeem Jeffries’ friends and neighbors gave him a big middle finger,” said House Oversight Chairman James Comer, R-Ky. “If you lose three elections in your hometown, that’s a pretty big slap in the face.”
He added that Democrats “are going further and further to the left to the point where they are full-blown, card-carrying socialists.”
And then there is the anti-Israel, anti-Jewish, and in some cases, antisemitic take by some of these candidates. Rep. Greg Landsman, D-Ohio, is a moderate Democrat from a swing district. He’s Jewish and one of the most pro-Israel Democrats in the House.
“There are some on the left who use Israel the way that some on the right use immigrants or trans kids as a way to divide. And I think it’s terrible. It’s also just not what voters want us talking about,” said Landsman.
HOUSE DEMOCRAT LASHES OUT WHEN GRILLED ON WHETHER SOCIALIST VICTORIES WOULD THREATEN DEM UNITY
Yours truly tangled with Rep. John Larson, D-Conn. – who once chaired the House Democratic Caucus. I pressed him about what the party would do about some candidates “who are too far to the left.”
“What does that mean? That’s your statement. Did the people of New York vote?” queried Larson.
I assured him that they did.
“Is that democracy?” asked Larson.
“But if some of them are antisemitic,” I countered.
“Is that a democracy?” continued Larson.
“Will you stand by people if they have antisemitic views?” I followed up.
Larson finally addressed my inquiry. His answer crystallized the schism the Democratic Party now faces.
“I’m against antisemitism, if that’s your question,” Larson declared.
Rep. John Larson, D-Conn., got into a heated exchange with Fox News’ Chad Pergram over the views of some likely members of his party’s next freshman class. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
The fact that Democrats are now facing this debate robs them of valuable time on economic issues.
Landsman argued that voters would prefer candidates to stick to groceries and the price of gas.
Gottheimer echoed Landsman on kitchen table subjects.
“We should be focused on ways to actually solve problems like that. Not coming in here and using tea party tactics and trying to divide up the country and pray to socialist ideals,” said Gottheimer.
So what is the party to do?
DEMOCRACY ’26: STAY UP TO DATE WITH THE FOX NEWS ELECTION HUB
“They’re our nominees. We’re going to support them. We’re going to welcome them. They’re going to be part of our caucus and we’re going to unite behind Leader Jeffries,” said Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., the top Democrat on the Oversight panel.
But that doesn’t address the fissures. It doesn’t address how voters may perceive the party. And it doesn’t establish if these new Democratic nominees will work on behalf of the party to raise money and advocate for Democrats across the board. Or, will they become professional bomb throwers – ala what the right has endured for a while.
“It’s going to be a lot harder to get things done when you get more and more extreme candidates who are here because they’re interested in political celebrity. They are interested in fighting. They’re interested in making points,” asserted Rep. Dusty Johnson, R-S.D.
Republicans have had an abysmal week themselves – President Donald Trump and Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., for instance, got into a shouting match over Iran. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images; Tyler Kaufman/Getty Images)
Republicans suffered through an absolutely abysmal week. House GOP leaders had to yank multiple bills off the floor and send lawmakers home early because of internal disputes. President Trump and Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., got into a shouting match about Iran. And the president even threatened to veto a bipartisan housing bill. President Trump then refused to sign the bill at the Capitol, despite his aides touting the bill and House Republicans tricking out Statuary Hall for a signing ceremony.
The President characterized the housing bill as “a yawn.”
But the Democrats’ internal fractures may have superseded any internecine fighting among Republicans.
“While it’s not been a great week for Republicans, I think it’s been a much worse week for Democrats because of these primary elections,” observed Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart, R-Fla.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
Democrats will certainly run on economic issues and capitalize on statements by the President about basic issues like housing. But will a genuine policy debate outweigh fears about progressives nationwide?
Emotion and feelings rule in politics. And it could be a problem for Democrats if Republicans appropriate what happened in New York and Xerox it onto battleground districts across the country.
Anthropic teamed up with California to get more state workers to use its artificial intelligence assistant Claude as part of an effort to leverage technology to make the government more efficient.
Gov. Gavin Newsom, who announced the partnership on Monday, said state agencies will be able to access Claude at a 50% discount. Free training and other assistance will also be available to the workers. California’s local governments will also get the same discount under the agreement.
Government workers can use Claude to draft and summarize documents, analyze information and do other tasks.
Anthropic, an AI company based in San Francisco, has a version of its AI assistant for government clients that provides more security than what it provides other consumers.
The new partnership shows how AI is playing a bigger role at work as tech companies market their tools as ways to complete tasks more quickly. Last year, San Francisco made Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat, which is powered by OpenAI’s model, available to nearly 30,000 city employees.
Still, the rise of automation at work has heightened concerns that people will lose their jobs. There are also worries that there are not yet adequate guardrails in place to mitigate data privacy and security risks.
Anthropic and the governor said that they’re focused on the responsible use of AI.
“AI should not replace the human work of government; it should help our workers move faster, solve problems more effectively, and deliver better results for Californians,” Newsom said in a statement.
The remarks didn’t appear to comfort union leaders.
“Wow. Look local government, the Gov is giving you a 50% off coupon to give up your residents’ private data, outsource your jobs to big tech. Isn’t that cool? Because California basically invented AI slop!” said Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher, president of the California Federation of Labor Unions, AFL-CIO, in a post on X.
Anthropic has faced political hurdles as it pushes to get more companies and government agencies to use its products.
Most notable, it’s sparred publicly with the Trump administration, which ordered the company to cut off foreign access to its most powerful AI systems this month.
The Trump administration cited potential national security risks, but Anthropic disagreed with the findings. Last week, tensions decreased after the U.S. government gave Anthropic permission to restore access to its AI model Mythos to certain clients.
Valued at nearly $1 trillion, Anthropic has also signaled it plans to become a publicly traded company.
California has already started using Claude more in state government to develop tools to get the public to engage more in AI policy discussions and assist state workers, the governor’s office said in its news release.
State agencies, including the Department of Motor Vehicles, are also using AI to reduce wait times and improve customer service.
“As state employees, our goal is to provide our fellow Californians with the best possible service,” Government Operations Agency Secretary Nick Maduros said in a statement. “To do that, we need to make sure our teams have access to the best modern tools, including Claude and other emerging technologies.”
-
North Carolina3 minutes ago
North Carolina is hot, dry, and about have fireworks everywhere. Why isn’t there a burn ban?
-
North Dakota10 minutes agoToddler who survived cardiac arrest and was left at hospital finds forever home
-
Ohio13 minutes ago2 found dead in vehicle in Ohio park, police say
-
Oklahoma18 minutes agoNonprofit Pike Off OTA sues to halt East-West Connector turnpike over environmental claims
-
Oregon25 minutes agoOregon Supreme Court to hear $1B PacificCorp wildfire case
-
Pennsylvania27 minutes agoPennsylvania Roundup: State takes action to contain spread of measles, bolstering public health
-
Rhode Island33 minutes agoCar carrying family of 3 pulled from Seekonk River in Rhode Island
-
South-Carolina40 minutes agoSC moves to revive death-penalty in double murder after federally commuted sentence
