Haake Pans GOP’s ‘Suboptimal Answers’ For Gun Rights

Capitol Hill correspondent Garrett Hake interviewed Rep. Ro Khana on the Wednesday’s MSNBC Reports For what ended up being a series lamentations against Republicans. Haake would declare GOP answers in support of gun rights to be “suboptimal,” wondered what to do about those pesky GOP voters, and told Khana is mission is to try to figure out how to defeat “the anti-gun boogeyman” perception.

Haake told Khana that, “Republican lawmakers have had suboptimal answers when they have been asked by reporters about that age disparity here that why an 18-year old needs an AR-15 if they can’t buy a beer. It, that seems like the kind of thing that is in polling sometimes an 80-20 issue.”

Finally getting around to question, Haake wondered about all those troublesome voters, “How do you break through the problem where the 20 are the same 20 who are voting in Republican primaries? So even though there is a large majority of issues here, those who say no are often the most important for legislation to be passed. What do you do about that dynamic?”

Khana declared that “a few Republicans” will need show “the courage” to support “these policies that are common sense,” while also trying to portray his party as moderate, “And we’ve got to convince people, no we aren’t going to take away the right to bear arms or the Second Amendment rights for most, almost all law-abiding citizens. This is really targeting a discrete problem.”

Haake then wrapped up the interview by agreeing, “Democrats have to figure out how to speak the language culturally to convince people they’re not the anti-gun boogeyman, I think it’s a huge part of this. Congressman, Ro Khana, we’ve got to leave it there, appreciate you taking the time out from this hearing to come talk to us.”

You could begin by discrediting members of your own party. After speaking suboptimal responses, you can come up with compelling reasons why 18-year-olds are allowed to enlist in military service, but cannot purchase an AR-15.

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The transcript of the show on June 8, 2008 is available here:

MSNBC Reports

6/8/2022

11.06 am ET

GARRETT HAAKE: Republican lawmakers have had suboptimal answers when they have been asked by reporters about that age disparity here that why an 18-year old needs an AR-15 if they can’t buy a beer. That seems like something that polling can sometimes make 80-20. The problem is that the 20 people who vote in Republican primaries also vote for you. How can this be solved? Even though this is an issue that has a huge majority, it means the people who oppose legislation passing in one room are those most important. What do you do about that dynamic? 

RO KHANA:  I think it will take a few Republicans to have the courage to come out for these policies that are common sense and I think they will find that many of them will win, I don’t think they will lose if they say 18-year olds shouldn’t have military-style weapons and they, we need to make the case based on data. And we’ve got to convince people, no we aren’t going to take away the right to bear arms or the Second Amendment rights for most, almost all law-abiding citizens. The problem is being addressed.

HAAKE: Democrats have to figure out how to speak the language culturally to convince people they’re not the anti-gun boogeyman, I think it’s a huge part of this. Congressman, Ro Khana, we’ve got to leave it there, appreciate you taking the time out from this hearing to come talk to us.