Everyone knows my bias on this issue, but i'm finding it really hard to take the Dems seriously on this issue when they weren't willing to vote for the Cornyn bill. Yeah it wasn't the 5 steps forward that they wanted (all no-fly list people banned), but it was at least 1 step forward (all no-fly list people face a brief waiting period during which the Feds can get a court order I.E. minimal due process). The only real justification I've seen for the Dems to vote against it is so they can run ads saying "na na na na GOP luvs terristz". Why wouldn't the "do something anything" vote for the bill that could actually pass other than politics?
Because the 72 hour waiting period is totally meaningless. What is the point of putting people on that list in the first place if they're deemed to be potentially dangerous enough to be banned from planes but not buy weapons? Buying a gun and shooting up a place is a hell of a lot easier than hijacking a plane and crashing it or getting past security with a bomb.
Isn't 72 hours enough time for the government to put forward evidence as to why someone is too dangerous to buy a gun? A lot of people on the No-Fly List are just unfortunate to share the same name as a terrorist. Is that enough reason to punish them?
And anyways, isn't it a good thing that we are forcing the government to back up their No-Fly list with actual evidence? Right now, what's the recourse if you get put on the list? What evidence does the government have to put forward to support it?
I can tell you fiirst hand no, that is not much time at ALL.
