Gun Lobby Extremism Blocks Cities' Common Sense On Guns

A week and a half after Dallas, days after Baton Rouge, the mayor of Cleveland is powerless to stop armed protesters from intimidating convention goers and menacing the police.

Why? The National Rifle Association prefers it that way.

This week we're seeing the NRA's vision for America on full display. For the gun lobby, the ideal is guns for anyone, anytime, anywhere -- even on crowded city streets. To that dangerous end, it continues to push a state-level policy that ties the hands of mayors and police chiefs and blocks cities from protecting their own citizens.

So, as much as Cleveland might like to set more reasonable limits on where people can openly carry guns, the city is handcuffed. In 2006, the gun lobby's allies in the Ohio general assembly overrode a Republican governor's veto and made "preemption" the law.

Today, bending to the gun lobby, more than 40 states with preemption laws bar cities from setting their own public safety policies.

Some preemption laws contain provisions that sway officials from even attempting to address gun violence. For example, in Florida, local officials who adopt any gun rules or regulations can face fines up to $5,000. They can also be removed from office.

The effect is chilling. It's also illogical. It's why Florida cities can prohibit knives but not guns at their parades, and why Cleveland can prohibit glass bottles but not guns outside the convention.

Other preemption laws give out-of-state gun lobby groups the standing to sue local officials in court -- and collect attorneys' fees and damages at taxpayer expense. That was the case in Pennsylvania, before the State Supreme Court struck down a punitive preemption law on procedural grounds. Now NRA lobbyists are trying to revive it in the legislature this year.

That's how the gun lobby operates. They set up shop in state capitols. They push laws that rob cities of the right to control their own affairs, and that punish mayors for doing their jobs. Then, they make taxpayers foot the bill for the lawsuits that inevitably follow.

The disconnect between the gun lobby's interests and those of mayors and police -- particularly after Dallas and Baton Rouge -- is jarring.

Every day, police put their lives on the line to uphold the Constitution, defend our laws, and protect us. They epitomize service and sacrifice. Yet, as Dallas Police Chief David Brown eloquently and rightly pointed out last week, policymakers are failing our cops and communities.

Reflecting on his state's lax gun laws -- after the protesters who were openly, lawfully carrying rifles had created confusion for police as they chased the gunman attacking them -- Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings said, "I just want to come back to common sense."

The mayor is not alone. Look at the polls, and close to 90 percent of the public supports bucking the NRA and fixing our gun laws.

After the mass shooting in Orlando, the overwhelming majority of Americans said they backed the ideas the Senate voted on and the House discussed last month. One proposal would require a background check for every gun sale. The other would give law enforcement the ability to block a suspected terrorist from buying a gun, while at the same time protecting his or her due-process rights.

Congress remains gridlocked, but at the state level, common sense is increasingly defining our gun politics and policymaking. Since Newtown, six states have closed a loophole in federal law by requiring background checks on all gun sales -- making it 18 states in total with such laws. Nevada and Maine can make it 20 this year, if voters approve Election Day ballot initiatives.

The more that lawmakers and voters reject gun lobby extremism, the closer we come to striking an all-important balance.

We can protect our gun rights while making sensible, effective policy. And every time we buck the NRA -- especially when we stand up for mayors and their cities -- we can help protect the police duty-sworn to protect us.

John Feinblatt is the president of Everytown for Gun Safety