| | | | Remember when banning bump stocks was a thing? | | Amid the everything-all-at-once nature of news under President Trump, things get lost. Many don't matter. Others should. A lot.
In that latter category are the murders of 58 innocent people at a country music festival in Las Vegas. That shooting, the single largest mass casualty incident in modern American history, happened 22 days ago.
The days following the shooting were dominated by angry and passionate calls to action directed at Congress. Gun control advocates insisted something must be done. Even the National Rifle Association signed on to changing regulations regarding bump fire stocks -- legal add-ons used by the Vegas shooter that turned a semi-automatic rifle into an automatic one.
And then, nothing. Check out this Google Trends search data on "bump stocks":
Interest in bump stocks surged in the wake of the Vegas shooting on Sunday, October 1, but it almost as quickly faded. By October 14 -- less than two weeks after the shooting -- the search interest in bump stocks was back to pre-shooting levels.
That lack of interest has coincided with a major slowdown in congressional action. California Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein has introduced a bill that would ban bump stocks. On the House side, Florida Republican Rep. Carlos Curbelo and Massachusetts Democratic Rep. Seth Moulton have co-sponsored a similar bill. But congressional Republicans seem uninterested in moving a ban forward, preferring to let the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives handle it.
Without public attention or pressure, it's uniquely possible, of course, that nothing at all happens. And this after the largest mass shooting in modern history.
-- Chris
| | LAWMAKERS SAY THEY DIDN'T KNOW TROOPS WERE IN NIGER | | Some senators have been going on TV and saying they didn't know the United States had troops in Niger as questions swirl about the raid that killed four US servicemen there earlier this month.
The Pentagon, however, said it has kept Congress informed of the operation. Military investigators are looking into the exact circumstances of the October 4 raid, including how Sgt. La David Johnson was separated from the 12-member team as it was ambushed by 50 ISIS fighters.
The list of senators now includes: - Democratic Sen. Bob Casey (told Chris Cuomo on CNN's "New Day" on Monday)
- GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham (told NBC's "Meet the Press" on Sunday)
- Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (also told NBC's "Meet the Press" on Sunday)
Why this matters: The Pentagon told CNN it keeps Congress regularly informed on the movements within the agency. And the White House said Monday it notified congressional leaders in June about 965 troops conducting counterterrorism duties in Niger and Cameroon.
So are they reading the updates?
GOP Sen. Rand Paul took a jab at Graham in a tweet about it: | | Chandler was the best character on "Friends." Everyone knows this.
Timesman Peter Baker on Trump, Bannon and FDR
Trump isn't actually a very good dealmaker, according to WaPo's Phil Rucker, Sean Sullivan and Paul Kane
An eye-popping story by The Hill's Reid Wilson about sexual harassment in state capitols
CNN's MJ Lee on Donald Trump's self-described status as the "King of Debt"
The Ringer's Zach Kram is right: Dave Roberts is a really good manager | | EPA ADMINISTRATOR GETS 'ROUND-THE-CLOCK DETAIL | | The Environmental Protection Agency is beefing up security measures surrounding Administrator Scott Pruitt to an unprecedented level, as members of Congress are asking if the costs are a "potential waste or abuse of taxpayer dollars."
CNN's Rene Marsh and Gregory Wallace broke the news:
Pruitt's security detail is in the process of expanding by hiring a dozen more agents, according to a source with knowledge of the situation, as the number of threats against the agency leader increases.
The incoming agents will grow the team that works in shifts to provide him around-the-clock protection, something unheard of for Pruitt's predecessors.
Salaries alone for the full team will cost at least $2 million per year, according to figures compiled by CNN from public documents. The numbers do not include costs such as training, equipment and travel. | | | Chris is a big ambient fan. And this new one from Grand Valley State University New Music Ensemble is hauntingly good. | | From CNN's Ryan Struyk: Trump just wrapped up his ninth month in office and the reviews are in -- and not good.
He's averaged a 36.9% approval rating during his third quarter in a nearly 50,000-interview Gallup Poll over the last three months.
That's down from 38.8% last quarter and 41.3% during his first quarter. It's also the worst third quarter for any president in modern history and it's better than only 31 (!) of the 288 presidential quarters overall that Gallup has measured over the last seven decades.
The new poll news from over the weekend also doesn't pair well with The New Yorker's new cover, which kind of speaks for itself: | | Former FBI Director James Comey tweeted -- on his long-suspected Twitter account -- a photo of himself on a road, writing he was leaving Iowa today. He added: "Will try to tweet in useful ways."
CNN's Maegan Vasquez writes about it:
The former FBI director has been mostly off the radar since he was fired from his post in May by President Donald Trump amid an investigation into the Trump campaign's potential ties to Russia.
The tweet from Iowa appears after months of rousing suspicion that the @formerbu Twitter handle belonged to Comey. Gizmodo first reported back in March about speculation the account belonged to the former FBI director.
His longtime friend, Benjamin Wittles -- who is the editor in chief of Lawfair -- confirmed the account belongs to Comey shortly after. | | | H/T CNN's Brenna Williams | | GOP Sen. John McCain appeared alongside his daughter, Meghan McCain, on ABC's "The View" Monday morning.
This was his reaction when the table discussed President Donald Trump's threat to him last week, when he said, "And people have to be careful because at some point I fight back."
Now, here's your end-of-newsletter reminder to tell everyone you know to subscribe to The Point! | | We'd love to share our other newsletters with you. Follow this link for daily coverage of the world's top stories, savvy market insights, an insider's look into the media, and more. Our authors for The Point are Chris Cillizza and Saba Hamedy. Send your tips and thoughts via email to Chris or Saba. Follow on Twitter: Chris and Saba. | | | Get the Nightcap, a comprehensive summary of the most important political news, delivered to your inbox daily. | | | | | |
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