Veteran Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) will not run for another term in 2016, but that could be very bad news for gunowners because, according to the Los Angeles Times, he has already endorsed anti-gun New York Sen. Charles Schumer to be his successor in the Democratic leadership position.
The 75-year-old Reid, still recovering from a nasty accident late last year that left his face bruised and his right eye injured, has been in office for three decades, and was majority leader until the GOP won control.
A reporter for Bloomberg News put it bluntly: “This is the opportunity Chuck Schumer has been waiting for…He’s known for his support of gun control, tax increases on high-income households and environmental protection.”
Schumer’s name is well-known to Second Amendment activists across the country as a perennial anti-gunner. In November 1993 he infamously announced after Congress passed the Brady Handgun Law that, “We’re here to tell the NRA their nightmare is true.” A week later, he told a press conference, “We’re going to hammer guns on the anvil of relentless legislative strategy. We’re going to beat guns into submission!”
Schumer began his congressional career when he was elected to represent New York’s 16th House district in 1980. He rose to the Senate in 1998, defeating then-Sen. Al D’Amato. He claims he supports the Second Amendment, but his actions speak louder than all his words.
The senior senator from New York has come to epitomize the Democrats as “the party of gun control.” However, as a leader and recruiter of new Democrats into Congress, he was very effective in toning down the anti-gun rhetoric when it suited that purpose, critics have quietly suggested.
Another thing that rankles some people is his propensity to seek publicity. It has been said by various observers that “the most dangerous place in Washington is between Schumer and a television camera.”
However, one biography notes that Schumer makes it a point to visit at least once a year in each county in New York. He also pays attention to local issues, which sits well with his constituents.
