The action of 46 of our Senators (all but four of them Republicans)
today in blocking
a bill that would have expanded the current system of background checks for
gun purchasers caused me to flash back to that formerly-august chamber’s
history.
It was in 1954, when Joseph McCarthy (R-Wisc.) was
conducting his anti-communist witch hunt, & had moved into a fight with the
US Army, which hired Joseph Welch to defend it. In true Tail-gunner Joe
fashion, McCarthy accused one of Welch’s associates of having Communist ties.
Welch’s response must have sunk into the very wallpaper of the chamber.
“Until this moment, Senator, I think I never really
gauged your cruelty or your recklessness.” & when McCarthy blustered, Welch
just ran him over (& effectively ended his career). “You have done enough. Have
you no sense of decency, sir, at long last?” Have you left no sense of decency?”
Well, times have changed in the last 60 years. Not a
one of those 46 has any shred of decency.
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