Ted Cruz: Dems Filibustered Legislation That Would Have Had Texas Church Shooter in Prison [VIDEO]

by Terresa Monroe-Hamilton | November 7, 2017 3:27 pm

Yesterday, on “Fox News @ Night,” Cruz really laid into Democrats. He said that in 2013, the Democrats filibustered the Grassley-Cruz legislation that “would have resulted in this shooter being in federal prison instead of murdering those innocents in that Texas church.” I still admire and really follow Ted Cruz and I know he is sick in his soul over this killing in his state. I’m also sure he’s furious because it didn’t have to be this way.

Cruz said, “[T]his should have been stopped beforehand. Under federal law, it was illegal for this individual to purchase a firearm. He had a conviction for a crime that’s punishable by more than a year in prison, and he had a conviction for multiple domestic violence crimes. Both of those, it’s already ineligible. But, several things happened: Number one, the Air Force — the Obama administration didn’t report those convictions to the [NICS] database. That’s an endemic problem. It’s a problem with the federal government. It’s a problem with the states. And so, when he went in to buy the guns, they ran the background check, and they didn’t find it because it wasn’t in the database. But I’ll tell you we could have prevented this. In 2013, in the wake of Sandy Hook, I joined with Chuck Grassley, we introduced legislation that was called the Grassley-Cruz legislation. And it was aggressive legislation targeting felons and violent criminals to stop them from getting guns.”

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Cruz was not done by a longshot: “There were a couple elements of that legislation that were critical: One, it mandated that federal agencies, including the Air Force, report to the [NICS] because that was a problem back then. But, two, and this is an even more critical piece, if it had been reported to the background database, when he went into Academy to buy this — these weapons, he lied on the forms. That is a felony to lie on those forms. The Obama administration didn’t prosecute those cases. In 2010, 48,000 felons and fugitives lied and illegally tried to purchase guns. They prosecuted only 44 of them.”

Cruz finished off with: “Democrats filibustered the legislation that would have resulted in this shooter being in federal prison instead of murdering those innocents in that Texas church.”

Ted Cruz is right on every point here and there’s more. Devin Kelley escaped from a mental health facility in New Mexico in 2012. You want to tell me how a guy who was in a mental institution wasn’t reported to NICS and it never showed up on a background check? He was sent to the Peak Behavioral Health Services Center in Santa Teresa, New Mexico after beating his wife and child while stationed at Holloman Air Force Base. So, the Air Force didn’t report the guy to the feds for serving a year in the brig after being court-martialed for beating his wife and step-son. He fractured the boy’s skull. Then the mental institution he was in didn’t report him either. WTH?

From KHOU:

Devin Kelley was sent to the Peak Behavioral Health Services Center in Santa Teresa, New Mexico after beating his wife and child while stationed at Holloman Air Force Base.

On June 13, 2012, Kelley escaped from the center and fled across the state line to El Paso.

In the missing person report, Kelley was described as “a danger to himself and others as he had already been caught sneaking fire arms onto Hollomon Air Force Base.”

The report said Kelley “was attempting to carry out death threats” he had made on his military chain of command.

El Paso police arrested him at a bus stop and turned him over to New Mexico police.

A lot of people have a LOT of explaining to do here. Their negligence enabled a killer to take 26 innocent lives in Texas. Cruz is right to blame the Democrats, but there’s also a long list of others who bear the blame for this and none of it has to do with gun control.

Cruz also heralded the bravery of the armed man who “stepped forward to engage the gunman.” And then the media tried to nail him on gun control. Cruz had this to say, “You know, it is an unfortunate thing that the immediate place the media goes after any tragedy, after any murder, is politicizing it. We don’t need politics right now. You know, I would note in New York we saw a terror attack just this week with a truck. Evil is evil is evil, and will use the weaponry that is available.” Amen to that.

Endnotes:
  1. [Image]: https://rightwingnews1.wpenginepowered.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Ted-Cruz-e1510085405517.jpg
  2. video.foxnews.com: //video.foxnews.com

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