{"id":531225,"date":"2018-02-23T14:41:01","date_gmt":"2018-02-23T21:41:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/?p=531225"},"modified":"2018-02-23T14:41:01","modified_gmt":"2018-02-23T21:41:01","slug":"the-nra-has-changed-and-so-have-i","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/2018\/02\/the-nra-has-changed-and-so-have-i\/","title":{"rendered":"The NRA has changed \u2014 and so have I"},"content":{"rendered":"

COMMENTARY:<\/strong> Eight years ago, the NRA supported my re-election campaign to the U.S. House of Representatives, along with other Democratic incumbents in New Mexico. They did not support me when I ran for the U.S. Senate in 2012, and I have since donated their 2010 contribution to charity.<\/p>\n

I am an outdoorsman, a hunter, and gun owner, and I have always supported responsible gun ownership and public safety policies. I have also been heartbroken by our inability to take even the most basic steps around gun safety and the NRA\u2019s role in fighting them at every turn.<\/p>\n

\"Martin

Courtesy photo<\/p>

Martin Heinrich<\/p><\/div>\n

The shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary took place just a month after I was first elected to the Senate. It was one of the worst and most horrific mass shootings in American history. The American people clamored for action\u200a \u2014 \u200aanything to help reduce the threat of gun violence, especially in our schools.<\/p>\n

The reforms people demanded were commonsense and bipartisan, simple steps that would allow us to tell our children, \u201cnever again.\u201d The president rallied to the cause, and so did many of my new colleagues. And yet when it came time to deliver real legislative change, nothing happened.<\/p>\n

Nothing happened because the NRA opposed any commonsense reforms. I watched as many of my colleagues in the House and Senate fell in line.<\/p>\n

In my five years in the Senate, we\u2019ve seen dozens of mass shootings. After each incident, we clamor for action. We promise ourselves, \u201cnever again.\u201d And yet here we are again.<\/p>\n

While it\u2019s no secret that Congress is the most polarized it\u2019s been in generations, it is far past time we take action to ensure we keep guns out of the hands of those that would turn them on our communities.<\/p>\n

Since my first days in office\u200a \u2014 \u200ajust after the tragedy at Sandy Hook\u200a \u2014 \u200aI have reached across the aisle to put together commonsense legislation that could actually pass in this polarized environment. I have been willing to work with anyone to actually get something\u200a \u2014 \u200aanything!\u200a \u2014 \u200adone, and yet at every turn the NRA and their supporters in Congress have blocked our efforts.<\/p>\n