freebeacon--2020-02-15--The Curious Case of America’s Suicide Crisis

Every year since the turn of the millennium , the number of Americans dying by suicide has risen , with nearly 50,000 deaths in 2018 alone .
That steady increase began after almost a decade and a half of decline and has proceeded at such a pace that 2018 's per capita suicide rate is the highest since the start of World War II .
Suicide is now among the 10 leading causes of death in the United States , the second-most common cause for Americans between the ages of 10 and 24 , and the third-most for those between @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a tragedy .
But they are also a mystery .
Experts have been unable to pick apart a statistical story that grows stranger the closer you look .
What , they have been asking for years , is behind this unrelenting increase ?
`` We do n't have a good answer , '' Dr. Jonathan Singer , president of the American Association of Suicidology ( AAS ) , said .
`` That 's the most accurate answer . ''
Other experts are equally perplexed—as one put it , `` I have my guesses @ @ @ @ @ @ @ '' but guesswork remains guesswork .
Suicide has risen through booms and busts , across age groups , and simultaneously with Americans ' increasing self-reported happiness .
Explanations proffered by popular commentators and politicians raise more questions than they answer .
Of the crises of self-inflicted death that have struck Americans in recent years—including drugs and alcohol—the suicide spike is by far the hardest to explain .
At the same time , it has received the least attention : While the federal government earmarks millions of dollars for alcohol abuse and billions for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ way of funding .
A lack of research , as well as limited resources for interventions , promise to continue to make this case deadlier every year .
At the center of the suicide mystery is the question of how the crisis has gotten so big so quickly .
By the best estimates we have available , the suicide rate in 2018—14.8 suicide deaths per 100,000 people in the population—is the highest since 1938 ( when it hit 15.3 per 100,000 ) .
Data from half a century ago are likely to be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ so , suicide rates have followed a steadier trend , rising slowly through the '70s , curbing in the '80s , and then falling through the '90s until , all of a sudden , they take off in 2000 .
The subsequent rapid ascent looks unlike anything recorded in the data for the past 50 years .
`` Suicide rates are cyclical , '' Dr. Bart Andrews , an AAS board member , told the Washington Free Beacon .
`` If you look at the U.S. rates over the history that we 've @ @ @ @ @ @ @ see these 20- or 30-year cycles of up and down suicide trends . ''
Andrews said that he 's not yet convinced that the sudden spike in 2000 is a departure from this cyclicality—its magnitude may just represent better tracking .
But it is hard to see the past 20 years following the same dynamics as the '70s and '80s when data collection was at least closer in quality to today .
Demographically , the suicide spike concentrates among non-Hispanic whites and Native Americans , reflecting those groups ' historically higher suicide rates @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 20 years , men were three to four times more likely to commit suicide than women , although that is also true historically and cross-culturally .
Although it concentrates by race and sex in predictable groups , one of the curious features of the suicide spike is that all age groups are experiencing it .
Young people , in particular , are reaching record highs , but suicide is up for every age group between 15 and 85 .
What could explain this all-ages suicide wave ?
The answers available , as it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ questions .
`` Anyone who tells you that they know exactly why the rates are going up or going down is lying to you , '' Andrews said .
`` We truly do n't understand this really well . ''
`` I wish I could give you a better soundbite with this , '' Singer said .
`` It 's just so complicated , and we do n't know . ''
A two-decade suicide spike has given commentators and scientists time to formulate hypotheses .
But the holes in their arguments actually make @ @ @ @ @ @ @ For example , Singer explained , for `` a long time , '' suicidologists believed that youth suicide corresponded with other risky teenage behaviors—drinking , having sex , doing drugs , etc .
But as such behaviors have become less common , teen suicide has only risen—in other words , less risk now means more suicide , not less .
Andrews suggested that the spike has something to do with both cultural and economic changes .
But the latter explanation highlights something equally weird : The suicide rate seems largely unrelated to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ before , during , and after the Great Recession .
Other curiosities emerge when one more closely examines less-scholarly explanations .
Start with one often invoked by those on the left : the 400 million firearms in American homes .
Guns were at the center of a feature on the crisis in Rolling Stone last May , while in October , Rep. Carolyn Maloney ( D. , N.Y. ) released a report claiming to find that `` gun access is driving [ the ] suicide epidemic . ''
Maloney , Rolling Stone , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the leading cause of suicide death , but that has been true for decades .
Surprisingly , firearm deaths do not account for the major part of the increase in suicides since 1999 .
Data show that about 35 percent of `` added '' suicides since 1999 are attributable to firearms , compared with 53 percent added suffocation deaths and 12 percent `` other . ''
In other words , firearms can explain , at most , about a third of the increase .
That 's not that surprising , given that the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ their homes has fallen since the 1990s .
But it does suggest something else weird—why have suicides by suffocation become so much more prevalent over the past two decades ?
Another popular culprit is social media and smartphones .
Everyone from TV host Tucker Carlson to psychologists Jean Twenge and Jonathan Haidt has pointed their fingers at technology to explain teen suicide in particular .
Twenge has provided some empirical evidence for the case , linking extended screen use to increased suicide risk .
But the screens-suicide link is not so cut and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that there was no relationship between screen use and depression , except where depression predicted screen use among teen girls—not the other way around .
Another confirmed Twenge 's finding but also found that increased screen time explained just 0.4 percent of the variation in teens ' wellbeing .
The technology argument highlights one other oddity .
If social media and technology drive up teen suicide , it should be going up in other developed countries .
But teen suicide rates were flat between 1990 and 2015 across economically developed countries .
International @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in some developed countries but fallen in others .
In other words , the spread of tech ca n't be our only culprit , at least unmediated by something unique to America .
Faced with this mystery , some have simply labeled the suicide spike as a product of general social malaise .
These arguments often allude to `` deaths of despair , '' the sociological term coined by economists Anne Case and Angus Deaton to refer to rising suicide , drug , and alcohol deaths among middle-aged , white Americans , but @ @ @ @ @ @ @ deaths more broadly .
But Americans are actually less despairing than ever .
Gallup recently found a 40-year high in their satisfaction with life , while the share telling the General Social Survey that they are `` not too happy '' has barely budged .
There is much talk of a `` loneliness epidemic , '' but as Congress 's Joint Economic Committee found in a 2018 report , there are little data to indicate that Americans are lonelier today than they were decades ago .
And data from federal surveys show that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rates of suicidal ideation appear to be basically flat .
Singer cautioned that this last trend may be because research suggests that `` the people who die by suicide are not a pure subset of those who have suicidal thoughts , or even those who have attempts . ''
But it at least adds another layer to our mystery .
All of these would-be explanations show us more we can not explain .
The suicide rise goes up as risky behavior goes down ; it does not track economic rise-and-fall ; it 's @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ; it seems disconnected from technology , and it 's growing even as Americans seem to be happier .
Why , then , do we not know what is going on ?
Amidst a nationwide panic about Ebola in 2014 , Congress appropriated $ 5.4 billion to fight the deadly African disease .
In total , 11 Americans were infected , of whom two died .
That same year , 42,826 people died from suicide .
In FY 2015 , the National Institutes of Health allocated about $ 70 million to `` suicide @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Today , that number is about $ 150 million .
By comparison , alcohol abuse—which killed 75 percent of the people suicide did in 2018—gets nearly 3.5 times as much funding .
`` We need to have funding that is proportional to the crisis we 're facing , '' Andrews said .
`` We spend a pittance on suicide prevention , which tells me that culturally we still do n't value these deaths . ''
To the extent that we know what works , suicide prevention efforts face legislative and funding limitations @ @ @ @ @ @ @ comprehensive community-based suicide prevention , '' including support for community `` gatekeepers , '' which was shown to reduce teen suicide rates , in particular in rural communities .
But rates crept back up when the program was defunded .
The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention ( AFSP ) has called for expanded suicide assessment and intervention training for medical professionals , which was required by just nine states as of 2018 .
But the bigger problem is that there is a great deal that we do not know about preventing suicide .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ of consensus around what works best , or even what works at all .
`` One of the reasons that we do n't understand it really well is that understanding , the research , the amount of time and effort we put into understanding changes in the suicide rate , is abysmal , '' he said .
Dr. Jill Harkavy-Friedman , vice president of research for the AFSP , made a similar call for more funding , both for suicide research and suicide prevention .
`` Until we scale up intervention efforts at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ levels , we will likely continue to see an increase in suicides in the United States , '' she said .
`` As a nation , we need to significantly increase our investment in the science , education , and advocacy , in order to expand effective suicide prevention efforts .
The lives of millions of Americans depend on it . ''

Every year since the turn of the millennium, the number of Americans dying by suicide has risen, with nearly 50,000 deaths in 2018 alone.
That steady increase began after almost a decade and a half of decline and has proceeded at such a pace that 2018's per capita suicide rate is the highest since the start of World War II. Suicide is now among the 10 leading causes of death in the United States, the second-most common cause for Americans between the ages of 10 and 24, and the third-most for those between 25 and 44.
These figures are a tragedy. But they are also a mystery. Experts have been unable to pick apart a statistical story that grows stranger the closer you look. What, they have been asking for years, is behind this unrelenting increase?
"We don't have a good answer," Dr. Jonathan Singer, president of the American Association of Suicidology (AAS), said. "That's the most accurate answer."
Other experts are equally perplexed—as one put it, "I have my guesses, other people have their guesses," but guesswork remains guesswork. Suicide has risen through booms and busts, across age groups, and simultaneously with Americans' increasing self-reported happiness. Explanations proffered by popular commentators and politicians raise more questions than they answer.
Of the crises of self-inflicted death that have struck Americans in recent years—including drugs and alcohol—the suicide spike is by far the hardest to explain. At the same time, it has received the least attention: While the federal government earmarks millions of dollars for alcohol abuse and billions for drugs, suicide receives little in the way of funding. A lack of research, as well as limited resources for interventions, promise to continue to make this case deadlier every year.
An 80-Year High
At the center of the suicide mystery is the question of how the crisis has gotten so big so quickly. By the best estimates we have available, the suicide rate in 2018—14.8 suicide deaths per 100,000 people in the population—is the highest since 1938 (when it hit 15.3 per 100,000).
Data from half a century ago are likely to be imprecise. But since the 1960s or so, suicide rates have followed a steadier trend, rising slowly through the '70s, curbing in the '80s, and then falling through the '90s until, all of a sudden, they take off in 2000. The subsequent rapid ascent looks unlike anything recorded in the data for the past 50 years.
"Suicide rates are cyclical," Dr. Bart Andrews, an AAS board member, told the Washington Free Beacon. "If you look at the U.S. rates over the history that we've been tracking it, we tend to see these 20- or 30-year cycles of up and down suicide trends."
Andrews said that he's not yet convinced that the sudden spike in 2000 is a departure from this cyclicality—its magnitude may just represent better tracking. But it is hard to see the past 20 years following the same dynamics as the '70s and '80s when data collection was at least closer in quality to today.
Demographically, the suicide spike concentrates among non-Hispanic whites and Native Americans, reflecting those groups' historically higher suicide rates compared with others. In the past 20 years, men were three to four times more likely to commit suicide than women, although that is also true historically and cross-culturally.
Although it concentrates by race and sex in predictable groups, one of the curious features of the suicide spike is that all age groups are experiencing it. Young people, in particular, are reaching record highs, but suicide is up for every age group between 15 and 85.
What could explain this all-ages suicide wave? The answers available, as it turns out, only lead to more questions.
The Story Gets Stranger
"Anyone who tells you that they know exactly why the rates are going up or going down is lying to you," Andrews said. "We truly don't understand this really well."
"I wish I could give you a better soundbite with this," Singer said. "It's just so complicated, and we don't know."
A two-decade suicide spike has given commentators and scientists time to formulate hypotheses. But the holes in their arguments actually make the crisis appear even more mysterious.
For example, Singer explained, for "a long time," suicidologists believed that youth suicide corresponded with other risky teenage behaviors—drinking, having sex, doing drugs, etc. But as such behaviors have become less common, teen suicide has only risen—in other words, less risk now means more suicide, not less.
Andrews suggested that the spike has something to do with both cultural and economic changes. But the latter explanation highlights something equally weird: The suicide rate seems largely unrelated to the business cycle, growing just as quickly before, during, and after the Great Recession.
Other curiosities emerge when one more closely examines less-scholarly explanations. Start with one often invoked by those on the left: the 400 million firearms in American homes. Guns were at the center of a feature on the crisis in Rolling Stone last May, while in October, Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D., N.Y.) released a report claiming to find that "gun access is driving [the] suicide epidemic."
Maloney, Rolling Stone, and others correctly identify that firearms are the leading cause of suicide death, but that has been true for decades. Surprisingly, firearm deaths do not account for the major part of the increase in suicides since 1999.
Data show that about 35 percent of "added" suicides since 1999 are attributable to firearms, compared with 53 percent added suffocation deaths and 12 percent "other." In other words, firearms can explain, at most, about a third of the increase.
That's not that surprising, given that the share of Americans with a gun in their homes has fallen since the 1990s. But it does suggest something else weird—why have suicides by suffocation become so much more prevalent over the past two decades?
Another popular culprit is social media and smartphones. Everyone from TV host Tucker Carlson to psychologists Jean Twenge and Jonathan Haidt has pointed their fingers at technology to explain teen suicide in particular. Twenge has provided some empirical evidence for the case, linking extended screen use to increased suicide risk.
But the screens-suicide link is not so cut and dry. One large longitudinal analysis found that there was no relationship between screen use and depression, except where depression predicted screen use among teen girls—not the other way around. Another confirmed Twenge's finding but also found that increased screen time explained just 0.4 percent of the variation in teens' wellbeing.
The technology argument highlights one other oddity. If social media and technology drive up teen suicide, it should be going up in other developed countries. But teen suicide rates were flat between 1990 and 2015 across economically developed countries. International variation extends beyond teens—suicide rates have risen in some developed countries but fallen in others. In other words, the spread of tech can't be our only culprit, at least unmediated by something unique to America.
Faced with this mystery, some have simply labeled the suicide spike as a product of general social malaise. These arguments often allude to "deaths of despair," the sociological term coined by economists Anne Case and Angus Deaton to refer to rising suicide, drug, and alcohol deaths among middle-aged, white Americans, but now often used to refer to self-inflicted deaths more broadly.
But Americans are actually less despairing than ever. Gallup recently found a 40-year high in their satisfaction with life, while the share telling the General Social Survey that they are "not too happy" has barely budged. There is much talk of a "loneliness epidemic," but as Congress's Joint Economic Committee found in a 2018 report, there are little data to indicate that Americans are lonelier today than they were decades ago. And data from federal surveys show that at least among older Americans, self-reported rates of suicidal ideation appear to be basically flat.
Singer cautioned that this last trend may be because research suggests that "the people who die by suicide are not a pure subset of those who have suicidal thoughts, or even those who have attempts." But it at least adds another layer to our mystery.
All of these would-be explanations show us more we cannot explain. The suicide rise goes up as risky behavior goes down; it does not track economic rise-and-fall; it's driven not by firearms but by suffocation; it seems disconnected from technology, and it's growing even as Americans seem to be happier. Why, then, do we not know what is going on?
Is Suicide a Priority?
Amidst a nationwide panic about Ebola in 2014, Congress appropriated $5.4 billion to fight the deadly African disease. In total, 11 Americans were infected, of whom two died.
That same year, 42,826 people died from suicide. In FY 2015, the National Institutes of Health allocated about $70 million to "suicide" and "suicide prevention" research. Today, that number is about $150 million. By comparison, alcohol abuse—which killed 75 percent of the people suicide did in 2018—gets nearly 3.5 times as much funding.
"We need to have funding that is proportional to the crisis we're facing," Andrews said. "We spend a pittance on suicide prevention, which tells me that culturally we still don't value these deaths."
To the extent that we know what works, suicide prevention efforts face legislative and funding limitations. Singer pointed to research on "comprehensive community-based suicide prevention," including support for community "gatekeepers," which was shown to reduce teen suicide rates, in particular in rural communities. But rates crept back up when the program was defunded. The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) has called for expanded suicide assessment and intervention training for medical professionals, which was required by just nine states as of 2018.
But the bigger problem is that there is a great deal that we do not know about preventing suicide. Andrews said that there is a lack of consensus around what works best, or even what works at all.
"One of the reasons that we don't understand it really well is that understanding, the research, the amount of time and effort we put into understanding changes in the suicide rate, is abysmal," he said.
Dr. Jill Harkavy-Friedman, vice president of research for the AFSP, made a similar call for more funding, both for suicide research and suicide prevention.
"Until we scale up intervention efforts at the community, state, and national levels, we will likely continue to see an increase in suicides in the United States," she said. "As a nation, we need to significantly increase our investment in the science, education, and advocacy, in order to expand effective suicide prevention efforts. The lives of millions of Americans depend on it."


freebeacon--2020-02-15--Review: ‘Fight House: Rivalries in the White House from Truman to Trump’

Since President Donald Trump took office , the media have spilled oceans of ink on the conflicts coming from inside his White House .
While his first year had notable ideological splits among staffers and a high turnover , such internecine conflict is far from new , as shown in Tevi Troy 's latest book Fight House : Rivalries in the White House from Truman to Trump .
The book traces infighting among staffers in the modern presidency , looking at administrations from Harry Truman to Trump .
The modern White House staff started under Truman 's predecessor , Franklin @ @ @ @ @ @ @ expanded greatly under his New Deal policies .
The Reorganization Act of 1939 created the Executive Office of the President , which , since then , has expanded to an operation of more than 1,600 staffers that has generated many prominent careers in the process .
Roosevelt 's White House was no stranger to conflict either .
The new agencies and governmental authorities lent themselves to conflict and the president himself `` designed his whole theory of management on conflict , '' according to White House aide Stephen Hess .
Presidents Truman and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ operations and got much of their advice from cabinet members , which minimized rivalries .
But even Truman 's White House had plenty of conflict , with a notable example coming from the decision to recognize Israel .
Secretary of State George Marshall , who came to that position with an already sterling résumé that included standing up the military to fight in World War II , was dead set against recognition—arguing it would only anger nearby Arabs who would likely destroy the new state in a war .
But counterarguments were put @ @ @ @ @ @ @ He worried about the hotly contested Jewish vote in New York and the emerging Cold War with the Soviet Union in which Israel could be made an ally .
Clifford won the day , but at a meeting just before recognition was announced , Marshall went so far as to say he would vote against Truman in the next election for that decision .
The role of the White House staff was cemented in the 1960s under Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson , who made policymaking a White House prerogative .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ time was between JFK 's brother—Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy—and Johnson himself .
While ostensibly outranking the attorney general as vice president , Johnson lacked the fraternal relationship and access enjoyed by Robert Kennedy .
That pattern of personal relationships beating out professional ones crops up repeatedly in Troy 's accounting , whether it 's Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner in the current administration , or adviser and close friend to the Obamas Valerie Jarret in the previous one .
RFK and Johnson clashed in the area where their authorities overlapped—especially civil rights @ @ @ @ @ @ @ colorful nicknames , with Johnson dismissing the Kennedy crowd as `` the Harvards '' and Bobby 's wife Ethel calling Johnson `` Huckleberry Capone . ''
Troy points to the shifting power dynamics between the two men as a major reason for their conflict .
At the start of their relationship , RFK was a lowly Senate staffer while Johnson ran the place .
In JFK 's White House , Bobby 's relationship with the president gave him the upper hand , but his brother 's assassination shifted the dynamic in LBJ 's @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the book centers on foreign policy , which is not an accident , Troy argues .
`` Compromising on domestic policy can mean splitting the dollars spent on a program or moderating the impact of a proposed rule or bill , '' he writes .
`` But issues in the national security realm are often binary .
There is no real compromise between ‘ invade Iraq ' and ‘ do n't invade Iraq . '
'' Under President Richard Nixon , foreign policy was dominated by the national security adviser , Henry @ @ @ @ @ @ @ William Rogers .
However , Rogers had some advantages in the fight , such as a longstanding friendship going back to their days in the Eisenhower administration .
But Kissinger was very smart and ambitious , and he used his relative proximity to the president to win over his trust .
Kissinger positioned himself as the lynchpin in Nixon 's foreign policy to the point where Rogers was largely cut out of one of Nixon 's biggest foreign policy moves—reopening relationships with China .
Kissinger , for instance , faked an illness while @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to discuss opening relations .
When the event took place , Rogers was left out of a key meeting between Mao and Nixon that the White House adviser attended .
Foreign policy battles dominated the infighting during the administration in which Troy himself served as deputy assistant and then acting assistant for domestic policy—that of George W. Bush .
The big split then was between Vice President Dick Cheney and Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld on the one side and Secretary of State Colin Powell on the other .
Powell was much more @ @ @ @ @ @ @ than Cheney and Rumsfeld .
The dispute did not play out directly , but rather through a series of media leaks from Powell and questioning memos issued by Rumsfeld .
Yet some of the more entertaining parts of the book have less to do with grand policy disputes and more with the personal nature of the fighting .
President Bill Clinton 's liberal adviser George Stephanopoulos called the triangulating Dick Morris `` a small sausage of a man '' as part of their dispute over the general direction of that presidency .
In @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Deputy Attorney General James Comey was dismissively referred to as `` Saint Jim '' by opponents .
President Barack Obama 's first chief of staff , Rahm Emmanuel , used to call foreign policy adviser Ben Rhodes `` Hamas '' for the latter 's position on the Israel-Palestine conflict .
Ultimately , some level of conflict can work well for a president .
The amount in a specific administration often has to do with the president 's own preference , Troy writes .
Conflict can help flesh out successful policies just as much @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a flailing administration .

Since President Donald Trump took office, the media have spilled oceans of ink on the conflicts coming from inside his White House. While his first year had notable ideological splits among staffers and a high turnover, such internecine conflict is far from new, as shown in Tevi Troy's latest book Fight House: Rivalries in the White House from Truman to Trump.
The book traces infighting among staffers in the modern presidency, looking at administrations from Harry Truman to Trump. The modern White House staff started under Truman's predecessor, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, as the federal government expanded greatly under his New Deal policies. The Reorganization Act of 1939 created the Executive Office of the President, which, since then, has expanded to an operation of more than 1,600 staffers that has generated many prominent careers in the process.
Roosevelt's White House was no stranger to conflict either. The new agencies and governmental authorities lent themselves to conflict and the president himself "designed his whole theory of management on conflict," according to White House aide Stephen Hess.
Presidents Truman and Dwight D. Eisenhower ran more tightly controlled operations and got much of their advice from cabinet members, which minimized rivalries.
But even Truman's White House had plenty of conflict, with a notable example coming from the decision to recognize Israel. Secretary of State George Marshall, who came to that position with an already sterling résumé that included standing up the military to fight in World War II, was dead set against recognition—arguing it would only anger nearby Arabs who would likely destroy the new state in a war.
But counterarguments were put forward by special counsel Clark Clifford: He worried about the hotly contested Jewish vote in New York and the emerging Cold War with the Soviet Union in which Israel could be made an ally. Clifford won the day, but at a meeting just before recognition was announced, Marshall went so far as to say he would vote against Truman in the next election for that decision.
The role of the White House staff was cemented in the 1960s under Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson, who made policymaking a White House prerogative. The most famous staff battle from that time was between JFK's brother—Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy—and Johnson himself.
While ostensibly outranking the attorney general as vice president, Johnson lacked the fraternal relationship and access enjoyed by Robert Kennedy. That pattern of personal relationships beating out professional ones crops up repeatedly in Troy's accounting, whether it's Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner in the current administration, or adviser and close friend to the Obamas Valerie Jarret in the previous one.
RFK and Johnson clashed in the area where their authorities overlapped—especially civil rights. Their conflict included its share of colorful nicknames, with Johnson dismissing the Kennedy crowd as "the Harvards" and Bobby's wife Ethel calling Johnson "Huckleberry Capone."
Troy points to the shifting power dynamics between the two men as a major reason for their conflict. At the start of their relationship, RFK was a lowly Senate staffer while Johnson ran the place. In JFK's White House, Bobby's relationship with the president gave him the upper hand, but his brother's assassination shifted the dynamic in LBJ's favor.
Much of the conflict highlighted in the book centers on foreign policy, which is not an accident, Troy argues. "Compromising on domestic policy can mean splitting the dollars spent on a program or moderating the impact of a proposed rule or bill," he writes. "But issues in the national security realm are often binary. There is no real compromise between 'invade Iraq' and 'don't invade Iraq.'"
Under President Richard Nixon, foreign policy was dominated by the national security adviser, Henry Kissinger, who overwhelmed Secretary of State William Rogers. However, Rogers had some advantages in the fight, such as a longstanding friendship going back to their days in the Eisenhower administration.
But Kissinger was very smart and ambitious, and he used his relative proximity to the president to win over his trust. Kissinger positioned himself as the lynchpin in Nixon's foreign policy to the point where Rogers was largely cut out of one of Nixon's biggest foreign policy moves—reopening relationships with China.
Kissinger, for instance, faked an illness while in Pakistan to secretly fly to China to discuss opening relations. When the event took place, Rogers was left out of a key meeting between Mao and Nixon that the White House adviser attended.
Foreign policy battles dominated the infighting during the administration in which Troy himself served as deputy assistant and then acting assistant for domestic policy—that of George W. Bush. The big split then was between Vice President Dick Cheney and Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld on the one side and Secretary of State Colin Powell on the other.
Powell was much more wary of going to war with Iraq than Cheney and Rumsfeld. The dispute did not play out directly, but rather through a series of media leaks from Powell and questioning memos issued by Rumsfeld.
Yet some of the more entertaining parts of the book have less to do with grand policy disputes and more with the personal nature of the fighting. President Bill Clinton's liberal adviser George Stephanopoulos called the triangulating Dick Morris "a small sausage of a man" as part of their dispute over the general direction of that presidency.
In George W. Bush's White House, Deputy Attorney General James Comey was dismissively referred to as "Saint Jim" by opponents. President Barack Obama's first chief of staff, Rahm Emmanuel, used to call foreign policy adviser Ben Rhodes "Hamas" for the latter's position on the Israel-Palestine conflict.
Ultimately, some level of conflict can work well for a president. The amount in a specific administration often has to do with the president's own preference, Troy writes. Conflict can help flesh out successful policies just as much as it can help to a sink a flailing administration.


Beacon Extra 2/14/20

Welcome to the Washington Free Beacon ’ s morning newsletter , your comprehensive briefing on the Enemies of Freedom .
To get this newsletter sent straight to your inbox every morning , sign up here .
THE BEST MONEY CAN BUY … `` Bloomberg Hires Fyre Fest Meme Team , '' by WFB ’ s Andrew Stiles : Former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg hired the social media team [ Jerry Media ] behind Fyre Festival , the most catastrophic public misadventure since Hillary Clinton 's 2016 presidential campaign … The promotional materials for the failed festival , which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ media , convinced thousands of rich idiots to fly to the Bahamas in hopes of seeing Blink-182 .
What they found instead was utter chaos .
HOW TO LOSE THE HOUSE IN TWO YEARS … `` In Early States , Voters With Private Health Insurance Abandon Sanders , '' by WFB ’ s Collin Anderson : A Washington Free Beacon analysis of census data and early primary results found that Sanders finished no higher than third and as low as fifth in the three Iowa counties with the highest proportion of privately insured @ @ @ @ @ @ @ areas with high concentrations of privately insured voters reinforces concerns that the Vermont senator could undermine down-ballot Democrats in the general election .
OUCH … `` ‘ South Bend Needs a Do-Over ’ : City Councilman Blasts Former Mayor Pete , '' by WFB ’ s Elizabeth Matamoros : South Bend , Ind.
, city councilman Henry Davis Jr. said … Buttigieg `` chose not to deal with '' issues facing African-American residents of South Bend .
`` You 're talking about double-digit unemployment .
You 're talking about a very high poverty @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 're talking about high crime .
You 're talking about schools shutting down and closing , '' he said .
RICH LIBS NOT GIVING UP YET … `` Joe Biden to host over 250 donors from Wall Street , big business at NYC fundraisers – here ’ s the guest list , '' via CNBC : A guest list , first obtained by CNBC , shows that the events will draw some of the biggest names in the financial services community to Biden ’ s side , despite his campaigns recent struggles .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ New Hampshire primary Tuesday and finished fourth in last week ’ s Iowa caucuses .
Biden ’ s campaign is expected to raise at least $ 1 million between the two gatherings .
PRINCIPLE $ … `` Mike Bloomberg Is Hiring So Many Operatives , Local and State Campaigns Are Starving for Help , '' via INTERCEPT : `` I ’ ve heard it in every state that we ’ ve been in , '' said [ senior Bernie Sanders adviser Chuck ] Rocha of the Bloomberg effect , adding that one staffer @ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` ‘ Hey Chuck , I ’ m with Bernie , I ’ m gon na vote for Bernie , but I ’ m gon na go get this money , cuz he ’ s gon na double my salary and pay me till November and I ’ ve got ta pay my bills when this thing is over.
’ '' SANDERS BACKS JUSSIE ’ S GIRL … via POLITICO : Bernie Sanders is throwing his weight behind Kim Foxx , the Cook County state ’ s attorney who is facing several primary @ @ @ @ @ @ @ been simultaneously celebrated by progressives and come under fire nationally for her handling of actor Jussie Smollett ’ s case .
QUIET PART OUT LOUD … `` Maxine Waters : California Should Have More Say Over Primary Process Because of Its Rich Donors and Fancy Parties , '' by WFB ’ s Graham Piro : `` We have candidates who fly out to Los Angeles from everywhere to raise money , '' Waters said Thursday on CNBC .
`` You would have two , three , four at a time in Beverly Hills @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , who are very rich , were holding fancy parties , trying to accommodate the requests for donations and contributions . ''
`` The thinking is that if we are supplying tremendous dollars to candidates , we ought to have more say , '' she added .
WAKE UP , BORIS … `` China ’ s Huawei Charged With Racketeering , '' via WSJ : Huawei Technologies Co. and two of its U.S. subsidiaries were charged with racketeering conspiracy to steal trade secrets in a new federal indictment unsealed Thursday , opening another @ @ @ @ @ @ @ battle with the Chinese telecommunications firm .
SEND THE BOMBERS … `` U.S. Warship in Arabian Sea Seizes Suspected Iranian Weapons , '' via REUTERS : The military said that the weapons seized on Sunday were `` identical '' to those seized by another U.S. warship in November … In recent years , U.S. warships have intercepted and seized Iranian arms likely bound for Houthi fighters in Yemen .
BUILD THE WALL AND THE BOMBERS … `` Pentagon seeks to cut F-35s , other equipment to pay for Trump ’ s border wall @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Pentagon is seeking to divert $ 3.8 billion , largely from its fiscal 2020 weapons procurement budget , in order to fund President Donald Trump ’ s border wall … Among the victims of the cuts : a mass of aircraft purchases including F-35 joint strike fighters , C-130J cargo aircraft , MQ-9 Reaper drones , and P-8 maritime surveillance planes … For the Navy , the Pentagon would cut two of the six F-35B short takeoff and landing aircraft added to the FY20 budget by Congress and two MV-22 Ospreys .
AND @ @ @ @ @ @ @ professor claims ‘ Paw Patrol ' is pushing pro-capitalism ‘ propaganda ' to kids , '' via FOX NEWS : `` Paw Patrol '' is an animated series about a group of do-good dogs and a 10-year-old boy named Ryder who rescue various people in tricky situations … [ Kings College professor Liam ] Kennedy said the depiction of the state and local government officials like Mayor Humdinger and Mayor Goodway are `` portrayed negatively . ''
… '' That 's problematic in that the ‘ Paw Patrol ' creators are sending this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the state to provide these services , '' he told Zanbergen .
HOPE AND DATA … `` EXCLUSIVE : Obama Advisers Trash Biden in WhatsApp Group Chat , '' by WFB Staff : Pod Save America : Mr. President , sir , we really need to talk about viable options , i.e.
, who can beat Donald Trump in November .
So I recommend we consider Mayor Pete .
Brennan : Mayor Pete 's a good guy .
He did great work for us in Somaliland .
The 🍞-pricing fiasco in Canada was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that screw up Ayers : I ca n't believe what I 'm hearing , Barry .
Are you the same community organizer who could n't stop talking about praxis ?
Or are you some corporate sellout who listens to a CIA company man who left the communist party in disgrace ?
Bernardine Dohrn : Srsly , Barack .
If u endorse Pete we 're kicking u out of Weather Underground .
DAYS SINCE JOE BIDEN DID A SUNDAY SHOW : 5 .
Welcome back , Joe !
`` You know who really doesn @ @ @ @ @ @ @ . ''
—Former President Barack Obama Thanks for reading !
Send tips to rutz @ freebeacon.com .

Bernie has a suburban problem and Bloomberg gets the best memes money can buy
Welcome to the Washington Free Beacon’s morning newsletter, your comprehensive briefing on the Enemies of Freedom. To get this newsletter sent straight to your inbox every morning, sign up here.
THE BEST MONEY CAN BUY … "Bloomberg Hires Fyre Fest Meme Team," by WFB’s Andrew Stiles: Former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg hired the social media team [Jerry Media] behind Fyre Festival, the most catastrophic public misadventure since Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign ...
The promotional materials for the failed festival, which was driven by celebrity endorsements on social media, convinced thousands of rich idiots to fly to the Bahamas in hopes of seeing Blink-182. What they found instead was utter chaos.
HOW TO LOSE THE HOUSE IN TWO YEARS … "In Early States, Voters With Private Health Insurance Abandon Sanders," by WFB’s Collin Anderson: A Washington Free Beacon analysis of census data and early primary results found that Sanders finished no higher than third and as low as fifth in the three Iowa counties with the highest proportion of privately insured adults …
His failure to succeed in areas with high concentrations of privately insured voters reinforces concerns that the Vermont senator could undermine down-ballot Democrats in the general election.
OUCH … "‘South Bend Needs a Do-Over’: City Councilman Blasts Former Mayor Pete," by WFB’s Elizabeth Matamoros: South Bend, Ind., city councilman Henry Davis Jr. said … Buttigieg "chose not to deal with" issues facing African-American residents of South Bend.
"You're talking about double-digit unemployment. You're talking about a very high poverty rate, over 40 percent. You're talking about high crime. You're talking about schools shutting down and closing," he said.
RICH LIBS NOT GIVING UP YET … "Joe Biden to host over 250 donors from Wall Street, big business at NYC fundraisers – here’s the guest list," via CNBC: A guest list, first obtained by CNBC, shows that the events will draw some of the biggest names in the financial services community to Biden’s side, despite his campaigns recent struggles. Biden landed in fifth place in the New Hampshire primary Tuesday and finished fourth in last week’s Iowa caucuses.
Biden’s campaign is expected to raise at least $1 million between the two gatherings.
PRINCIPLE$ … "Mike Bloomberg Is Hiring So Many Operatives, Local and State Campaigns Are Starving for Help," via INTERCEPT: "I’ve heard it in every state that we’ve been in," said [senior Bernie Sanders adviser Chuck] Rocha of the Bloomberg effect, adding that one staffer recently came to him and said, "‘Hey Chuck, I’m with Bernie, I’m gonna vote for Bernie, but I’m gonna go get this money, cuz he’s gonna double my salary and pay me till November and I’ve gotta pay my bills when this thing is over.’"
SANDERS BACKS JUSSIE’S GIRL … via POLITICO: Bernie Sanders is throwing his weight behind Kim Foxx, the Cook County state’s attorney who is facing several primary challengers after a first term that has been simultaneously celebrated by progressives and come under fire nationally for her handling of actor Jussie Smollett’s case.
QUIET PART OUT LOUD … "Maxine Waters: California Should Have More Say Over Primary Process Because of Its Rich Donors and Fancy Parties," by WFB’s Graham Piro: "We have candidates who fly out to Los Angeles from everywhere to raise money," Waters said Thursday on CNBC. "You would have two, three, four at a time in Beverly Hills having dinners and some of our contributors, who are very rich, were holding fancy parties, trying to accommodate the requests for donations and contributions."
"The thinking is that if we are supplying tremendous dollars to candidates, we ought to have more say," she added.
WAKE UP, BORIS … "China’s Huawei Charged With Racketeering," via WSJ: Huawei Technologies Co. and two of its U.S. subsidiaries were charged with racketeering conspiracy to steal trade secrets in a new federal indictment unsealed Thursday, opening another front in the Trump administration’s battle with the Chinese telecommunications firm.
SEND THE BOMBERS … "U.S. Warship in Arabian Sea Seizes Suspected Iranian Weapons," via REUTERS: The military said that the weapons seized on Sunday were "identical" to those seized by another U.S. warship in November … In recent years, U.S. warships have intercepted and seized Iranian arms likely bound for Houthi fighters in Yemen.
BUILD THE WALL AND THE BOMBERS … "Pentagon seeks to cut F-35s, other equipment to pay for Trump’s border wall," via DEFENSE NEWS: The Pentagon is seeking to divert $3.8 billion, largely from its fiscal 2020 weapons procurement budget, in order to fund President Donald Trump’s border wall …
Among the victims of the cuts: a mass of aircraft purchases including F-35 joint strike fighters, C-130J cargo aircraft, MQ-9 Reaper drones, and P-8 maritime surveillance planes … For the Navy, the Pentagon would cut two of the six F-35B short takeoff and landing aircraft added to the FY20 budget by Congress and two MV-22 Ospreys.
AND SESAME STREET MAINSTREAMS HOMELESSNESS … "Liberal professor claims 'Paw Patrol' is pushing pro-capitalism 'propaganda' to kids," via FOX NEWS: "Paw Patrol" is an animated series about a group of do-good dogs and a 10-year-old boy named Ryder who rescue various people in tricky situations …
[Kings College professor Liam] Kennedy said the depiction of the state and local government officials like Mayor Humdinger and Mayor Goodway are "portrayed negatively." …
"That's problematic in that the 'Paw Patrol' creators are sending this message that we can't depend on the state to provide these services," he told Zanbergen.
HOPE AND DATA … "EXCLUSIVE: Obama Advisers Trash Biden in WhatsApp Group Chat," by WFB Staff: Pod Save America: Mr. President, sir, we really need to talk about viable options, i.e., who can beat Donald Trump in November. So I recommend we consider Mayor Pete.
Brennan: Mayor Pete's a good guy. He did great work for us in Somaliland. The 🍞-pricing fiasco in Canada was not his fault. Ottawa station owns that screw up
Ayers: I can't believe what I'm hearing, Barry. Are you the same community organizer who couldn't stop talking about praxis? Or are you some corporate sellout who listens to a CIA company man who left the communist party in disgrace?
Bernardine Dohrn: Srsly, Barack. If u endorse Pete we're kicking u out of Weather Underground.
DAYS SINCE JOE BIDEN DID A SUNDAY SHOW: 5. Welcome back, Joe!
"You know who really doesn’t have it? Joe Biden." —Former President Barack Obama
Thanks for reading! Send tips to rutz@freebeacon.com.


freebeacon--2020-02-17--New 1776 Project Aims to Counter ‘Lethal’ Narrative of 1619 Project

A group of predominantly African-American academics , journalists , entrepreneurs , and community activists on Friday launched one of the most significant challenges yet to the New York Times ’ s controversial 1619 Project , which is named for the year slaves arrived in Virginia and argues that the United States was founded on racism .
Bob Woodson , a leader in the African-American community who has spent his career fighting to stave off the cycle of poverty and crime , argued on Friday that the 1619 Project ’ s message—that life outcomes for African Americans are shaped by the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` lethal '' narrative that perpetuates a culture of victimhood in the African-American community .
During the launch of his new 1776 initiative , named for the year America was founded , Woodson said the new group would challenge those who assert America is forever defined by past failures .
While different academics and journalists have criticized the 1619 Project since its release last year , the 1776 project represents one of the largest coordinated challenges to the New York Times ’ s narrative .
It will focus its efforts on opposing the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on future generations of African Americans .
The 1776 project will promote a series of essays and educational resources that provide an `` aspirational and inspirational alternative '' to the Times ’ s narrative .
`` People are inspired to achieve when they ’ re given victories that are possible , not always showering them with injuries to be avoided , '' Woodson said alongside partners at the National Press Club in Washington , D.C .
The fatalistic narrative of the 1619 Project , which is already taught in `` thousands of classrooms @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the partnering Pulitzer Center , deprives African Americans of the agency to improve their lives , Woodson said .
`` This garbage that is coming down from the scholars and writers from 1619 is most hypocritical because they don ’ t live in communities [ that are ] suffering , '' he continued .
`` They are advocating something they don ’ t have to pay the penalty for . ''
Glenn Loury , a professor of economics at Brown University and a 1776 contributor , echoed Woodson on the damaging impact the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ future generations .
`` The idea that the specter of slavery still determines the character of life among African Americans is an affront to me , '' Loury said at the Friday event .
`` We have shown , and will continue to show , that we are not merely bobbles at the end of a historical string , being pushed this way and that by forces beyond our control . ''
`` I believe in America , and I believe in black people , '' Loury added .
`` Something tells me @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 1619 Project authors don ’ t .
They don ’ t believe in America … and I ’ m sorry to have to report , I get the impression they don ’ t believe in black people . ''
`` The 1619 project offers a very crippling message to our children , '' said Dr. Carol Swain , a former professor of political science at Princeton and Vanderbilt University .
`` I was spared from having that message brought to me .
And I believe that if I had been exposed to that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ message , I don ’ t believe I would have been able to do the things I ’ ve done in life . ''
The 1619 Project was launched last summer to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the first arrival of African slaves to the American colonies .
It `` aims to reframe the country ’ s history by placing the consequences of slavery and the contributions of black Americans at the very center of our national narrative , '' and to show that `` different aspects of contemporary American life , from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are derived from America ’ s history of slavery .
In her inaugural essay for the Times ’ s initiative , Nikole Hannah-Jones , a Times correspondent and head of the 1619 Project , wrote , `` Anti-black racism runs in the very DNA of this country , as does the belief , so well articulated by Lincoln , that black people are the obstacle to national unity . ''
The 1776 project will promote success stories designed to counter the message of 1619 , such as `` slaves who became millionaires through @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to buy the `` plantations on which they once worked , '' Woodson explains on the group 's website .
The 1776 essays , published by the Washington Examiner , include pieces by Chicago Tribune columnist Clarence Page , DePaul University philosophy professor and author Jason Hill , and Columbia University English professor and Atlantic editor John McWhorter .
1776 is not the first coordinated effort to critique the 1619 Project .
Last December , the Times published a letter from five distinguished American historians—Victoria Bynum of Texas State University , James M. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of City University of New York , Sean Wilentz of Princeton University , and Gordon Wood of Brown University—requesting that the Times issue corrections for a series of factual errors .
Among the 1619 Project ’ s inaccuracies , the historians argued the Times should correct the claim that the Revolutionary War was fought to `` ensure that slavery would continue . ''
In a previous interview , McPherson , a Pulitzer Prize winner for his writings about the Civil War , said the 1619 Project is a `` very unbalanced , one-sided @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on the complexity of slavery . ''
In November , Wood said he was surprised the 1619 Project has the `` authority of the New York Times behind it '' given the project is `` so wrong in so many ways . ''
In a response to the letter , New York Times Magazine editor in chief Jake Silverstein refused to issue a correction and said , `` Historical understanding is not fixed ; it is constantly being adjusted by new scholarship and new voices . ''
In the months since Silverstein ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ journalist Cathy Young have highlighted historical inaccuracies in the 1619 Project .
Young also argues that the project has a `` fairly clear present-day agenda of furthering progressive-left ideology . ''
Woodson says he hopes 1776 will be able to `` counter the false history that the 1619 Project espouses and has disseminated as a school curriculum . ''
Woodson will not aim to challenge each assertion presented by 1619 Project , but rather to offer forward-looking solutions to counter 1619 's focus on the past .
`` Our focus will be to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ success in reviving our streets and communities , and actionable goals that should be pursued , '' Woodson says .

A group of predominantly African-American academics, journalists, entrepreneurs, and community activists on Friday launched one of the most significant challenges yet to the New York Times’s controversial 1619 Project, which is named for the year slaves arrived in Virginia and argues that the United States was founded on racism.
Bob Woodson, a leader in the African-American community who has spent his career fighting to stave off the cycle of poverty and crime, argued on Friday that the 1619 Project’s message—that life outcomes for African Americans are shaped by the history of slavery and Jim Crow—is a "lethal" narrative that perpetuates a culture of victimhood in the African-American community. During the launch of his new 1776 initiative, named for the year America was founded, Woodson said the new group would challenge those who assert America is forever defined by past failures.
While different academics and journalists have criticized the 1619 Project since its release last year, the 1776 initiative represents one of the largest coordinated challenges to the New York Times’s narrative. It will focus its efforts on opposing the negative impact the 1619 story will have on future generations of African Americans.
1776 will promote a series of essays and educational resources that provide an "aspirational and inspirational alternative" to the Times’s narrative. "People are inspired to achieve when they’re given victories that are possible, not always showering them with injuries to be avoided," Woodson said alongside partners at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.
The fatalistic narrative of the 1619 Project, which is already taught in "thousands of classrooms" across the country, according to the partnering Pulitzer Center, deprives African Americans of the agency to improve their lives, Woodson said.
"This garbage that is coming down from the scholars and writers from 1619 is most hypocritical because they don’t live in communities [that are] suffering," he continued. "They are advocating something they don’t have to pay the penalty for."
Glenn Loury, a professor of economics at Brown University and a 1776 contributor, echoed Woodson on the damaging impact the 1619 Project's message would have on future generations.
"The idea that the specter of slavery still determines the character of life among African Americans is an affront to me," Loury said at the Friday event. "We have shown, and will continue to show, that we are not merely bobbles at the end of a historical string, being pushed this way and that by forces beyond our control."
"I believe in America, and I believe in black people," Loury added. "Something tells me when I read that document that the 1619 Project authors don’t. They don’t believe in America … and I’m sorry to have to report, I get the impression they don’t believe in black people."
"The 1619 project offers a very crippling message to our children," said Dr. Carol Swain, a former professor of political science at Princeton and Vanderbilt University. "I was spared from having that message brought to me. And I believe that if I had been exposed to that, if I had internalized that negative message, I don’t believe I would have been able to do the things I’ve done in life."
The 1619 Project was launched last summer to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the first arrival of African slaves to the American colonies. It "aims to reframe the country’s history by placing the consequences of slavery and the contributions of black Americans at the very center of our national narrative," and to show that "different aspects of contemporary American life, from mass incarceration to rush-hour traffic," are derived from America’s history of slavery.
In her inaugural essay for the Times’s initiative, Nikole Hannah-Jones, a Times correspondent and head of the 1619 Project, wrote, "Anti-black racism runs in the very DNA of this country, as does the belief, so well articulated by Lincoln, that black people are the obstacle to national unity."
1776 will promote success stories designed to counter the message of 1619, such as "slaves who became millionaires through entrepreneurial determination" or who went on to buy the "plantations on which they once worked," Woodson explains on the group's website.
The 1776 essays, published by the Washington Examiner, include pieces by Chicago Tribune columnist Clarence Page, DePaul University philosophy professor and author Jason Hill, and Columbia University English professor and Atlantic editor John McWhorter.
1776 is not the first coordinated effort to critique the 1619 Project. Last December, the Times published a letter from five distinguished American historians—Victoria Bynum of Texas State University, James M. McPherson of Princeton University, James Oak of City University of New York, Sean Wilentz of Princeton University, and Gordon Wood of Brown University—requesting that the Times issue corrections for a series of factual errors.
Among the 1619 Project’s inaccuracies, the historians argued the Times should correct the claim that the Revolutionary War was fought to "ensure that slavery would continue." In a previous interview, McPherson, a Pulitzer Prize winner for his writings about the Civil War, said the 1619 Project is a "very unbalanced, one-sided account, which lacked context and perspective on the complexity of slavery." In November, Wood said he was surprised the 1619 Project has the "authority of the New York Times behind it" given the project is "so wrong in so many ways."
In a response to the letter, New York Times Magazine editor in chief Jake Silverstein refused to issue a correction and said, "Historical understanding is not fixed; it is constantly being adjusted by new scholarship and new voices."
In the months since Silverstein’s response, Princeton's Wilentz and journalist Cathy Young have highlighted historical inaccuracies in the 1619 Project. Young also argues that the project has a "fairly clear present-day agenda of furthering progressive-left ideology."
In one of the earliest critiques of the 1619 Project, American historian Wilfred McClay identified a "highly questionable" agenda motivating the Times's embrace of unsubstantiated historical claims, describing the project as a "political gambit of attributing comprehensive bred-in-the-bone racism to the overwhelming majority of Americans."
Woodson says he hopes 1776 will be able to "counter the false history that the 1619 Project espouses and has disseminated as a school curriculum."
Woodson will not aim to challenge each assertion presented by 1619 Project, but rather to offer forward-looking solutions to counter 1619's focus on the past.
"Our focus will be to identify and highlight solutions, models of success in reviving our streets and communities, and actionable goals that should be pursued," Woodson says.


freebeacon--2020-02-17--Virginia Assault Weapon Ban, Magazine Confiscation Defeated in Senate

The Virginia proposal to ban `` assault weapons '' and confiscate ammunition magazines holding more than 12 rounds was defeated in a bipartisan vote on Monday morning .
In a 10-5 vote , the state senate 's Judiciary Committee referred HB961 to the crime commission for further study , meaning the bill will not go to a final vote this legislative session .
Democratic senators Creigh Deeds , John S. Edwards , Scott Surovell , and Chap Petersen joined all of the Republicans on the committee to vote down the measure .
It passed the Democrat-controlled House of Delegates by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ crowd of gun-rights advocates who had filled the committee room to capacity began to cheer as the bill was defeated .
Their cheers , combined with those of the overflow crowd in the hallway outside the meeting , were loud enough that senators briefly paused the meeting .
The defeat of the ban and confiscation measure followed mass demonstrations from Second Amendment rights advocates in January .
Tens of thousands peacefully rallied in Richmond during a gun-rights gathering as lawmakers debated gun-control bills .
The rally was a culmination of three months of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Governor Ralph Northam ( D. ) and members of the newly elected Democratic majorities in both houses of the legislature .
As of February , 141 localities , including 91 of Virginia 's 95 counties , had declared themselves Second Amendment `` sanctuaries '' and vowed not to enforce new gun laws they deemed unconstitutional .
`` Everybody 's hard work , Lobby Day , and sanctuary movement paid off ! ''
Philip Van Cleave , president of the Virginia Citizens Defense League , which organized the Richmond rally and helped facilitate the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The National Rifle Association , which also organized a lobby day in January and had been continually working with lawmakers to block HB961 , said the vote represented a significant victory for Virginia gun owners .
`` This is a victory for honest , hard-working Virginians who shared their support for the Second Amendment in rallies on the capitol , in one-on-one meetings with their lawmakers , in letters to the editor , and in phone calls , emails , and texts to their state senators , '' Catherine Mortensen , an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Beacon .
`` We thank the senators on the judiciary committee for listening to their constituents and delivering a bipartisan defeat of an egregious gun ban that would have criminalized law-abiding gun owners . ''
`` Wimps , '' Senator L. Louise Lucas ( D. ) said as the bill was defeated .
`` Bunch of wimps . ''
Everytown for Gun Safety , which spent $ 2.5 million in the 2019 state elections , did not immediately respond to a request for comment .
But gun-control group Brady United called the defeat @ @ @ @ @ @ @ legislation next year .
`` While we are disappointed in today 's vote , we are undeterred , '' Kris Brown , the group 's president , said in a statement .
`` This was not the outcome we wanted , but they can rest assured that they will hear from us , from advocates and from everyday Virginians in the intervening months about why we need to ban assault weapons in Virginia . ''
Had it passed , the bill would have had a wide-reaching effect .
The National Shooting Sports Foundation @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , said the vast majority of modern firearms come standard with magazines that hold more than 12 rounds .
It estimated HB961 could have affected hundreds of thousands or even millions of Virginians .
`` This bill would affect more than just your modern sporting rifles like the AR-15 , '' Mark Oliva , a spokesman for the group , told the Free Beacon when Democrats passed HB961 through a House committee earlier this month .
`` It would affect the vast majority of handguns . ''
The gun-control fight in Virginia is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have passed five gun measures , including a universal background check bill , red flag proposal , and one-gun-a-month purchase limit .
These proposals have not attracted as much vocal opposition from Democratic lawmakers as the ban and confiscation legislation did .
The legislature also has another session next year before the house and gubernatorial elections in November 2021 .
`` Today the Senate Judiciary Committee voted to defeat the largest attack on Virginia 's gun owners that we have seen in years , '' the Virginia Shooting Sports Association , the NRA @ @ @ @ @ @ @ vote .
`` The battle is not over but this bill is dead for this session . ''

The Virginia proposal to ban "assault weapons" and confiscate ammunition magazines holding more than 12 rounds was defeated in a bipartisan vote on Monday morning.
In a 10-5 vote, the state senate's Judiciary Committee referred HB961 to the crime commission for further study, meaning the bill will not go to a final vote this legislative session. Democratic senators Creigh Deeds, John S. Edwards, Scott Surovell, and Chap Petersen joined all of the Republicans on the committee to vote down the measure. It passed the Democrat-controlled House of Delegates by a slim majority last week.
The crowd of gun-rights advocates who had filled the committee room to capacity began to cheer as the bill was defeated. Their cheers, combined with those of the overflow crowd in the hallway outside the meeting, were loud enough that senators briefly paused the meeting.
The defeat of the ban and confiscation measure followed mass demonstrations from Second Amendment rights advocates in January. Tens of thousands peacefully rallied in Richmond during a gun-rights gathering as lawmakers debated gun-control bills. The rally was a culmination of three months of grassroots opposition to measures—especially confiscation efforts—backed by Governor Ralph Northam (D.) and members of the newly elected Democratic majorities in both houses of the legislature. As of February, 141 localities, including 91 of Virginia's 95 counties, had declared themselves Second Amendment "sanctuaries" and vowed not to enforce new gun laws they deemed unconstitutional.
"Everybody's hard work, Lobby Day, and sanctuary movement paid off!" Philip Van Cleave, president of the Virginia Citizens Defense League, which organized the Richmond rally and helped facilitate the sanctuary movement, tweeted after the vote.
The National Rifle Association, which also organized a lobby day in January and had been continually working with lawmakers to block HB961, said the vote represented a significant victory for Virginia gun owners.
"This is a victory for honest, hard-working Virginians who shared their support for the Second Amendment in rallies on the capitol, in one-on-one meetings with their lawmakers, in letters to the editor, and in phone calls, emails, and texts to their state senators," Catherine Mortensen, an NRA spokeswoman, told the Washington Free Beacon. "We thank the senators on the judiciary committee for listening to their constituents and delivering a bipartisan defeat of an egregious gun ban that would have criminalized law-abiding gun owners."
Gun-control supporters decried the bipartisan vote.
"Wimps," Senator L. Louise Lucas (D.) said as the bill was defeated. "Bunch of wimps."
Everytown for Gun Safety, which spent $2.5 million in the 2019 state elections, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. But gun-control group Brady United called the defeat disappointing. It vowed to pursue similar legislation next year.
"While we are disappointed in today's vote, we are undeterred," Kris Brown, the group's president, said in a statement. "This was not the outcome we wanted, but they can rest assured that they will hear from us, from advocates and from everyday Virginians in the intervening months about why we need to ban assault weapons in Virginia."
Had it passed, the bill would have had a wide-reaching effect. The National Shooting Sports Foundation, the gun industry's trade group, said the vast majority of modern firearms come standard with magazines that hold more than 12 rounds. It estimated HB961 could have affected hundreds of thousands or even millions of Virginians.
"This bill would affect more than just your modern sporting rifles like the AR-15," Mark Oliva, a spokesman for the group, told the Free Beacon when Democrats passed HB961 through a House committee earlier this month. "It would affect the vast majority of handguns."
The gun-control fight in Virginia is not over. The house and senate have passed five gun measures, including a universal background check bill, red flag proposal, and one-gun-a-month purchase limit. These proposals have not attracted as much vocal opposition from Democratic lawmakers as the ban and confiscation legislation did. The legislature also has another session next year before the house and gubernatorial elections in November 2021.
"Today the Senate Judiciary Committee voted to defeat the largest attack on Virginia's gun owners that we have seen in years," the Virginia Shooting Sports Association, the NRA's state affiliate, tweeted after the vote. "The battle is not over but this bill is dead for this session."


Beacon Extra

Welcome to the Washington Free Beacon ’ s morning newsletter , your comprehensive briefing on the Enemies of Freedom .
To get this newsletter sent straight to your inbox every morning , sign up here .
VA DEMS CAN ’ T PULL THE TRIGGER … `` Virginia Assault Weapon Ban , Magazine Confiscation Defeated in Senate , '' by WFB ’ s Stephen Gutowski : The crowd of gun-rights advocates who had filled the committee room to capacity began to cheer as the bill was defeated .
Their cheers , combined with those of the overflow crowd in the hallway @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that senators briefly paused the meeting .
BLOOMBERG KNOWS HOW TO DIG A HOLE … `` Bloomberg implied farming does n't take intelligence in 2016 comments , '' via FOX NEWS : Presidential candidate and former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg appeared to belittle both farmers and factory workers in 2016 comments made at a university forum … '' I could teach anybody , even people in this room , no offense intended , to be a farmer , '' Bloomberg said .
`` It 's a process .
You dig a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , you put dirt on top , add water , up comes the corn .
You could learn that . ''
DEMS IN DISARRAY … `` Campaigns warn of chaos ahead of the Nevada caucuses , '' via WAPO : Campaigns said they still have not gotten the party to offer even a basic explanation of how key parts of the process will work .
Volunteers are reporting problems with the technology that ’ s been deployed at the last minute to make the vote count smoother … '' It feels like the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ up as they go along , '' said one Democratic presidential aide .
AND HE ’ S THE ‘ MODERATE ’ CANDIDATE … `` For first time , Biden calls Obama deportations ‘ big mistake ' , '' via AP : Going further than he ever has in expressing regret over Obama administration immigration policy , presidential candidate Joe Biden called it a `` big mistake '' to have deported hundreds of thousands of people without criminal records .
… Biden stuck to his defense that the Obama administration did not `` put @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has done .
[ Jorge ] Ramos showed Biden a photo of an unaccompanied minor who was apprehended at the U.S.-Mexico border and detained during Obama 's second term .
SENDING THE BOMBERS … `` B-52 Bomber Spotted Flying Low Just Off Somali Coast , '' via THE DRIVE : A B-52H bomber belonging to the U.S. Air Force has been photographed flying low [ on Feb. 14 ] near the Somali island of Koyama .
According to a local photographer , the bomber , which appeared at around 2:30 PM local time @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the locals … B-52Hs are currently forward-deployed to Diego Garcia , America 's outpost in the Indian Ocean .
As we reported at the time , the Pentagon planned to send six of the bombers there as a contingency for a potential conflict with Iran .
WFB ABROAD … `` U.S .
Vows to Continue Backing Fight Against Islamic Terror in Africa , '' by WFB ’ s Adam Kredo : The United States is committed to sending counter-terrorism resources to Africa to aid the continent ’ s ongoing fight against radical Islamic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Mike Pompeo … Pompeo ’ s comments are being viewed as a dose of much-needed reassurance to African nations concerned about America ’ s ongoing commitment to their safety and security .
APPLE POISONED … `` Apple to Fall Short of Projected Revenue Due to Coronavirus , '' via WSJ : Apple Inc. AAPL 0.02 % became the first major U.S. company to say it won ’ t meet its revenue projections for the current quarter due to the coronavirus outbreak , which it said had limited iPhone production for worldwide sales and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
GRAY LADY RED-FACED … `` New 1776 Project Aims to Counter ‘ Lethal ’ Narrative of 1619 Project , '' by WFB ’ s Cole Carnick : Bob Woodson , a leader in the African-American community who has spent his career fighting to stave off the cycle of poverty and crime , argued on Friday that the 1619 Project ’ s message—that life outcomes for African Americans are shaped by the history of slavery and Jim Crow—is a `` lethal '' narrative that perpetuates a culture of victimhood in the African-American community @ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` Stelter : Was I Stupid to Take Avenatti Seriously as Possible 2020 Candidate ?
, '' by WFB ’ s David Rutz : `` Give me a media critique , '' [ CNN media correspondent Brian ] Stelter said .
`` Was that stupid on my part ?
What do you make of how Avenatti was covered by CNN and MSNBC ? ''
… Stelter was hardly alone in boosting Avenatti .
Panelists on MSNBC 's Deadline : White House said the political novice should be given attention as a possible 2020 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ . ''
THEY ’ RE STILL CASHING THE CHECKS THOUGH … `` Bloomberg News ’ s Dilemma : How to Cover a Boss Seeking the Presidency , '' via NYT : Journalists who hoped [ Michael ] Bloomberg ’ s candidacy would prove short-lived have watched him vault to the upper tier of the Democratic race … In 2018 , Mr. Bloomberg told an interviewer : `` I don ’ t want the reporters I ’ m paying to write a bad story about me . ''
That policy proved awkward during Mr. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of New York City … Now it is bordering on untenable , according to interviews with half a dozen Bloomberg journalists who requested anonymity .
EVEN LENIN PANDERED … `` How Bernie Sanders Fell in Line on Gun Control , '' by WFB ’ S Stephen Gutowski : The independent Vermont senator , who long took moderate positions on gun control , is now fully embracing left-wing positions on the issue as he works to become the Democratic Party 's standard bearer in 2020 … '' Bernie shifted with the Democratic Party ( @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Professor Larry Sabato … said in an email .
`` And he saw in 2016 his gun record could be a real detriment to his presidential ambitions . ''
WATER ALSO WET … `` ANALYSIS : Political Pundits Have No Idea What They ’ re Talking About , '' by WFB ’ s Andrew Stiles : From the perspective of voters who watch cable news and take seriously the so-called analysis and punditry they hear from so-called political experts in the media , [ Elizabeth ] Warren 's downfall is a shocking development @ @ @ @ @ @ @ upper-class residents of New York City and Washington , D.C. , to assess the hearts and minds of average Americans .
No one in the political punditry business would ever admit this , however .
If it were true , what would be the point of their careers ?
DAYS SINCE JOE BIDEN DID A SUNDAY SHOW : 2 .
Welcome back , Joe !
`` You know who really doesn ’ t have it ?
Joe Biden . ''
—Former President Barack Obama Thanks for reading !
Send tips to rutz @ @ @

Welcome to the Washington Free Beacon’s morning newsletter, your comprehensive briefing on the Enemies of Freedom. To get this newsletter sent straight to your inbox every morning, sign up here.
MENSHEVIKS PREPARE FOR LAST STAND … "Democratic Leaders Willing to Risk Party Damage to Stop Bernie Sanders," via NYT: Since Mr. Sanders’s victory in Nevada’s caucuses on Saturday, the Times has interviewed 93 party officials—all of them superdelegates … and found overwhelming opposition to handing the Vermont senator the nomination if he arrived with the most delegates but fell short of a majority …
Since Mr. Sanders won Nevada’s caucuses on Saturday, four donors have approached former representative Steve Israel of New York to ask if he can suggest someone to run a super PAC aimed at blocking Mr. Sanders. He declined their offer.
THE NEW NEW DEMOCRATS … "2020 Dem Plans Reflect Party of the ‘Professional Class’," by WFB’s Charles Fain Lehman: The [Manhattan Institute] report examines the distributive impacts of major proposals, including Medicare for All, student debt forgiveness, and the repeal of key components of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA). It argues that while Democratic candidates talk big about supporting workers and the poor, these programs primarily serve the interests of the wealthy …
Long branded as representatives of the working class, the Democratic Party has come to appeal primarily to the college-educated, often affluent residents of urban America, data indicate.
MIKE GOT IT DONE … "Bloomberg Locked Up Nearly Half a Million People on Marijuana Charges," by WFB’s Yuichiro Kakutani: The administrations of [Michael] Bloomberg's three predecessors … collectively arrested 226,000 people, or 25 people daily, for the same charge over a 24-year period between 1978 and 2001. During Bloomberg's tenure, approximately 471,000 people were arrested on possession charges …
The possession arrests for Bloomberg's tenure peaked in 2011 when the police hauled in more than 50,000 New Yorkers.
DOWNLOAD UNAVAILABLE IN WISCONSIN … "Coming to a podcast near you: Hillary Clinton," via POLITICO: The former first lady, secretary of State, and 2016 Democratic presidential nominee is planning to launch a new audio program in late spring, just in time for her to have a powerful new megaphone during the 2020 election …
Clinton’s show will feature her in conversation with a brand-name guest, who might be drawn from world leaders and politicians, of course, but also celebrities, authors and perhaps famous chefs.
BOOK THROWN … "Former Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh sentenced to 3 years for ‘Healthy Holly’ children’s book fraud scheme," via BALTIMORE SUN: [Pugh] told reporters: "This is not the last you’ll see of Catherine Pugh" …
Pugh’s political fall began in March when the Baltimore Sun revealed she had entered into a no-bid deal with the University of Maryland Medical System, where Pugh sat on the board of directors, to buy 100,000 copies of her sloppily self-published "Healthy Holly" books for $500,000.
YANG HOLDS OUT FOR BETTER OFFER … "Michael Bloomberg’s Campaign Sought Andrew Yang’s Backing, Floated Vice- Presidential Slot," via WSJ: Aides to the former New York City mayor reached out to discuss ways the two entrepreneurs-turned-politicians could work together as Mr. Bloomberg seeks the Democratic nomination, these people said.
Mr. Yang, who dropped out of the race earlier this month, didn’t commit to join forces, as he considers his own political future, a third person familiar with the discussions said.
NO SURRENDER … "Congressional Republicans Warn Trump Against Inking Peace Deal With Taliban," by WFB’s Adam Kredo: The lawmakers … are demanding they receive assurances the administration "will not place the security of the American people into the hands of the Taliban" …
The lawmakers are also demanding the release of so-called secret annexes in the draft agreement that they claim establish a set of unknown side deals with the Taliban, a move reminiscent of the Obama administration's secret agreements with Iran when the Iran nuclear deal was being negotiated.
TEHRAN MARY … "Iran Vice President Is One of 7 Officials to Contract Coronavirus," via NYT: The disclosure came a day after a cabinet meeting in which she was in close contact with other government leaders, including [Hassan] Rouhani. A photo posted by a BBC Persia reporter on Twitter showed she had been sitting a few yards from the president.
[Masoumeh] Ebtekar, one of four vice presidents, was known to Americans as "Mary" during the Tehran hostage crisis four decades ago, when, as a young revolutionary, she was a spokeswoman for the captors of the 52 Americans held at the United States Embassy.
PICTURE OF COWARDICE … "Sony World Photography Awards Removes Hong Kong Protest Images," via HYPERALLERGIC: Since pro-democracy protests prompted by the Hong Kong government’s now-scrapped extradition bill erupted across the city in spring 2019, China has tightened its grip on the media …
Now, some speculate WPO yielded to pressure from China to take down the photographs, especially because other entries featuring arguably graphic or politically sensitive content have not faced a similar fate in past competitions.
THE REAL VICTIMS … "Mark Halperin Says Murderers Are Treated More Fairly Than Canceled People," via MOTHER JONES: "I haven’t had a job interview in two years," Halperin said, adding that he has applied to work at restaurants and Target, trying to get health insurance for his three-year-old son …
When [asked to] differentiate between appropriate and inappropriate ways that he had been held accountable for his behavior … he said victims deserve "top priority" but complained again that there isn’t a mechanism for reintegrating canceled people.
THIS IS CNN … "Sasse Criticizes CNN for Referring to a Baby as a ‘Fetus That Was Born’," via CNN: "The Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act is about babies who have already been born," [Sen. Ben] Sasse said to the Washington Free Beacon. "I’m glad CNN finally made the correction, but there’s no reason this needed to take two days. Planned Parenthood desperately wants to misrepresent this bipartisan, pro-babies bill, and unfortunately too many reporters have bought their spin hook, line, and sinker."
PUNK IS DEAD … "Billy Idol is helping de Blasio take on idling cars in new campaign," via NY POST: Billy Idol has a new Rebel Yell: helping Mayor Bill de Blasio fight fume-spewing vehicles that idle on Big Apple streets …
The campaign will also publicize the city’s 2018 "Citizens Air Complaint Program," where individuals who see a bus or delivery truck idling for longer than four minutes can file a complaint and collect a 25 percent bounty off the fine, worth $87.50.
"The First Postmodern Pandemic," via WFB’s Matthew Continetti: We were better off when the media focused on impeachment. Now that it is interested in coronavirus, a familiar pattern will set in. Data will be publicized without the slightest sense of proportion. The most outrageous scenarios will receive the most attention. Speculation will be paraded as fact …
The Washington Post transcribes Democratic Party talking points when it suggests Vice President Mike Pence is incapable of overseeing the government's efforts because he opposes needle-sharing programs. Among the reasons [President Donald] Trump is said to have weakened public health? He defunded Planned Parenthood.
Thanks for reading! Send tips to rutz@freebeacon.com.


freebeacon--2020-02-18--How Bernie Sanders Fell in Line on Gun Control

Bernie Sanders has campaigned on his reputation as an outsider to become the Democratic presidential frontrunner , but the independent Vermont senator , who long took moderate positions on gun control , is now fully embracing left-wing positions on the issue as he works to become the Democratic Party 's standard bearer in 2020 .
Sanders long reflected the sensibilities of the rural gun culture of low-crime Vermont , even as the Democratic Party embraced increasingly restrictive gun control .
He voted against a law establishing gun dealer licensing and background checks while supporting a law protecting gun dealers and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of his career , he defended Vermont 's gun culture and said that he hoped to bridge the gap between his constituents and high gun-crime cities such as Chicago and Los Angeles .
No longer .
Political experts say that Sanders has moved to the left along with the rest of his party after he issue became a major vulnerability for him in his 2016 primary campaign against Hillary Clinton , who found and exploited Sanders ' rare vulnerability on the left .
`` Bernie shifted with the Democratic Party ( even as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Sabato , director of the University of Virginia Center for Politics , said in an email .
`` And he saw in 2016 his gun record could be a real detriment to his presidential ambitions .
Clinton repeatedly hit Sanders for his views on gun rights during the 2016 campaign , arguing that he was a shill for gun manufacturers and lobbyists rather than for victims of gun violence .
`` When it really mattered , Senator Sanders voted with the gun lobby , and I voted against the gun lobby , '' @ @ @ @ @ @ @ While Sanders repeatedly said that his views reflected those of his constituents in pro-gun Vermont , Clinton also pointed out that his views fell to the right of his fellow Vermont senator , Patrick Leahy .
Since 2016 , Sanders has slowly abandoned his independent streak .
He cosponsored a number of new gun-control measures in the Senate and has embraced anti-gun rhetoric on the 2020 campaign trail .
`` I ’ m running for president because we must end the epidemic of gun violence in this country , '' Sanders said in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ need to take on the NRA , expand background checks , end the gun show loophole , and ban the sale and distribution of assault weapons . ''
Sanders did not respond to a request for comment .
He has faced scrutiny for his so-called evolution , however .
When pressed on his vote against the 1993 Brady background check bill by New York Times editorial board in January , Sanders said , `` the world has changed a little bit . ''
`` I certainly have changed on that issue , '' @ @ @ @ @ @ @ well as partisans on both sides of the debate , have picked up on Sanders 's move the left .
NRA spokeswoman Amy Hunter said the senator 's position has fallen into line with a primary electorate that has moved further left on the issue .
`` Sanders 's increased intolerance of the NRA and law-abiding gun owners fits in perfectly with the larger narrative of a Democratic Party that is increasingly hostile toward the Second Amendment , '' Hunter told the Washington Free Beacon .
`` Each year , anti-gun Democrats become @ @ @ @ @ @ @ dangerous .
Now , candidates are openly supporting registration , confiscation , and bans .
Law-abiding gun owners must recognize the threat to their rights and turn out in November to elect a pro-gun president . ''
Gun-control supporters have also noticed Sanders 's changing approach to the Second Amendment .
Christian Heyne , spokesman for the pro-gun control Brady Campaign , acknowledged that the Democratic frontrunner has `` a complicated history '' but said he is convinced that Sanders has embraced an agenda in favor of gun control .
`` Sen. Sanders @ @ @ @ @ @ @ issue , and we are encouraged by the new messaging we are hearing from him and his campaign , '' Heyne said .
`` This demonstrates an evolution and growing commitment to preventing the gun violence epidemic in the United States .
This evolution is welcome and similarly reflects trends we see in voters and constituents nationwide . ''
Despite the change in tone and approach , Sanders 's competitors in the Democratic primary have still attacked his past support of gun rights .
Former vice president Joe Biden criticized Sanders for voting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ criminal misuse of guns , calling it the `` biggest mistake that Bernie made . ''
`` I introduced the first assault-weapons ban , '' Biden said at the New Hampshire debate .
`` I , in fact , got it passed .
I ’ m the only guy that beat the NRA twice .
I was , while I was pushing the Brady background bill , background checks , Bernie voted five times against it when he was in the House .
So , look , the other thing is that we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ things we did . ''
Sabato said candidates—even those who have portrayed themselves as outsiders challenging party orthodoxy—have increased incentives to fall into line on social issues as primary voters demand ideological purity .
`` This is all a part of the polarization that has taken place in our politics , '' he said .
`` When Bernie was first elected , there were loads of Democrats who were endorsed by the NRA and who fought gun control .
Most were in the South , Border States , and interior West .
So @ @ @ @ @ @ @ like a sore thumb . ''
Alan Gottlieb of the Second Amendment Foundation put it more bluntly .
`` Bernie Sanders early on in his political career had to be against gun control to win elections in Vermont , '' he told the Free Beacon .
`` To compete on the national stage of the Democratic Party he has abandoned that position .
The Democrats have become the party of gun prohibition . ''

Bernie Sanders has campaigned on his reputation as an outsider to become the Democratic presidential frontrunner, but the independent Vermont senator, who long took moderate positions on gun control, is now fully embracing left-wing positions on the issue as he works to become the Democratic Party's standard bearer in 2020.
Sanders long reflected the sensibilities of the rural gun culture of low-crime Vermont, even as the Democratic Party embraced increasingly restrictive gun control. He voted against a law establishing gun dealer licensing and background checks while supporting a law protecting gun dealers and manufacturers against frivolous lawsuits. For much of his career, he defended Vermont's gun culture and said that he hoped to bridge the gap between his constituents and high gun-crime cities such as Chicago and Los Angeles.
No longer. Political experts say that Sanders has moved to the left along with the rest of his party after he issue became a major vulnerability for him in his 2016 primary campaign against Hillary Clinton, who found and exploited Sanders' rare vulnerability on the left.
"Bernie shifted with the Democratic Party (even as an independent)," Professor Larry Sabato, director of the University of Virginia Center for Politics, said in an email. "And he saw in 2016 his gun record could be a real detriment to his presidential ambitions."
Clinton repeatedly hit Sanders for his views on gun rights during the 2016 campaign, arguing that he was a shill for gun manufacturers and lobbyists rather than for victims of gun violence.
"When it really mattered, Senator Sanders voted with the gun lobby, and I voted against the gun lobby," Clinton said in January of 2016. While Sanders repeatedly said that his views reflected those of his constituents in pro-gun Vermont, Clinton also pointed out that his views fell to the right of his fellow Vermont senator, Patrick Leahy.
Since 2016, Sanders has slowly abandoned his independent streak. He cosponsored a number of new gun-control measures in the Senate and has embraced anti-gun rhetoric on the 2020 campaign trail.
"I’m running for president because we must end the epidemic of gun violence in this country," Sanders said in his campaign launch video. "We need to take on the NRA, expand background checks, end the gun show loophole, and ban the sale and distribution of assault weapons."
Sanders did not respond to a request for comment.
He has faced scrutiny for his so-called evolution, however. When pressed on his vote against the 1993 Brady background check bill by New York Times editorial board in January, Sanders said, "the world has changed a little bit."
"I certainly have changed on that issue," he added.
Political experts, as well as partisans on both sides of the debate, have picked up on Sanders's move the left. NRA spokeswoman Amy Hunter said the senator's position has fallen into line with a primary electorate that has moved further left on the issue.
"Sanders's increased intolerance of the NRA and law-abiding gun owners fits in perfectly with the larger narrative of a Democratic Party that is increasingly hostile toward the Second Amendment," Hunter told the Washington Free Beacon. "Each year, anti-gun Democrats become more extreme and their policies become more dangerous. Now, candidates are openly supporting registration, confiscation, and bans. Law-abiding gun owners must recognize the threat to their rights and turn out in November to elect a pro-gun president."
Gun-control supporters have also noticed Sanders's changing approach to the Second Amendment. Christian Heyne, spokesman for the pro-gun control Brady Campaign, acknowledged that the Democratic frontrunner has "a complicated history" but said he is convinced that Sanders has embraced an agenda in favor of gun control.
"Sen. Sanders has a complicated history on the gun issue, and we are encouraged by the new messaging we are hearing from him and his campaign," Heyne said. "This demonstrates an evolution and growing commitment to preventing the gun violence epidemic in the United States. This evolution is welcome and similarly reflects trends we see in voters and constituents nationwide."
Despite the change in tone and approach, Sanders's competitors in the Democratic primary have still attacked his past support of gun rights. Former vice president Joe Biden criticized Sanders for voting to shield gun makers from lawsuits over criminal misuse of guns, calling it the "biggest mistake that Bernie made."
"I introduced the first assault-weapons ban," Biden said at the New Hampshire debate. "I, in fact, got it passed. I’m the only guy that beat the NRA twice. I was, while I was pushing the Brady background bill, background checks, Bernie voted five times against it when he was in the House. So, look, the other thing is that we have to be held accountable for the things we did."
Sabato said candidates—even those who have portrayed themselves as outsiders challenging party orthodoxy—have increased incentives to fall into line on social issues as primary voters demand ideological purity.
"This is all a part of the polarization that has taken place in our politics," he said. "When Bernie was first elected, there were loads of Democrats who were endorsed by the NRA and who fought gun control. Most were in the South, Border States, and interior West. So, Bernie didn’t stick out like a sore thumb."
Alan Gottlieb of the Second Amendment Foundation put it more bluntly.
"Bernie Sanders early on in his political career had to be against gun control to win elections in Vermont," he told the Free Beacon. "To compete on the national stage of the Democratic Party he has abandoned that position. The Democrats have become the party of gun prohibition."