I was in NYC Tuesday, here’s what I saw

PLUS: This is LITERALLY the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard a Republican say ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ {NAME}, On the way to my European tour, I’m flying out of JFK, so I decided to take a few days in New York to meet up with some old friends and enjoy some delicious NYC food. First, let me say that I love New York! It’s America's biggest city and capital to the world's financial markets, but that’s not why I love it. I love New York because it’s America’s original and greatest melting pot of cultures – one could even argue it’s the greatest in the world. In New York City, you’ll encounter people from every culture speaking every language on Earth. You’ll meet people from all walks of life – billionaires, folks enduring the hardest of times, and everything in between. Wherever you turn, you are greeted with a “NYC hello” – which isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but I’m somebody who tends to be blunt and call it like I see it. That sometimes gets me into trouble back home and in Washington, but here in NYC, it’s how everybody does it! When news broke about the tragic events in the subway shooting in Brooklyn, I got to witness firsthand how New Yorkers come together in the face of calamity. Let me tell you something: If you ever find yourself giving up on or doubting America, I encourage you to take a trip to NYC. The camaraderie and kinship I’ve witnessed here this week reminds me what’s possible when we come together and treat each other with dignity and respect. When we love and look out for each other, that’s when we’re at our strongest. The deranged lunatic that tried to break this city only brought it closer together. I’m glad to see that he’s behind bars, and thankful no one was killed. But I wanted to write to you today because while all of this was going on the ground in NYC, do you know what right-wing hacks like Marjorie “Trainwreck” Greene, and Lauren “Breitbart” Boebert were saying online and on the FOX Propaganda Network? They said the shooting would not have been as bad if it wasn’t for NYC’s strict gun laws. They said it would have been better if the passengers on the train had been armed and able to return fire. I have never heard anything so idiotic in all my life. Let’s set the scene here: A packed train car full of commuters at the height of rush hour. A man puts on a gas mask, tosses two smoke grenades into the crowd, and begins shooting a gun at random. In this tightly packed, completely enclosed train car, smoke quickly fills what little space remains, so now, no one can see anything. It’s total chaos. And these morons think that MORE people firing guns under those conditions would have improved the situation? I, for one, am grateful that did not happen. These jackaloons need to understand this is real life, not a movie or a video game. Let me say this: I am a veteran, I own several guns, and I believe in the Second Amendment. I also believe that we need to rewrite the gun laws in this country. The lunatic who carried out this attack had a prior rap sheet, including terrorist threats (!!!), and had recently posted dozens of violent rants to social media. Yet he just walked into an Ohio pawn shop and casually bought a gun, no questions asked. That sums up in a nutshell just how broken our gun laws are. Americans want this issue fixed. The NRA, the gun manufacturers, and the criminals do not. ENOUGH is ENOUGH! I’m sick of this and sick of them, and I know you probably are, too. Now is the time for us to send a message that gun violence will no longer be the norm in America. How do we do that? We elect Democrats! That fact is, we outnumber them. We need to stop letting them walk all over us and cowering in the face of their false narratives. Democrats aren’t going to bust into law-abiding gun owners’ homes and take their weapons. We just want to keep them out of the hands of children, criminals, and people with histories of violent threats. THAT should be the narrative … and Democrats should be pressuring every politician to either publicly state their agreement with these common-sense goals … or explain to Americans why they want guns in the hands of children, criminals, and people who make violent threats. Look, when I ran for Congress, everywhere I went, people would ask me about how I feel about guns, and how – as a gun owner and a veteran – I could run as a Democrat. So, I had honest conversations with folks and told them pretty much what I just told you. And you know what? For the most part, they listened, and they got where I was coming from. A few disagreed with me, but everyone respected my stance. That year, I didn’t quite win in my +56% Republican district … but I did come in 1st place out of all 435 Congressional candidates in the U.S.A when it came to flipping red votes blue. That’s why I was recruited to be the National Spokesperson for No Dem Left Behind, and it’s why I can tell you today that we can win over Republican and Independent voters on this issue and many others – we just have to talk to them plainly and lay out our case. We can do it, and together, we will. Our candidates, staff, and volunteers are doing their part. [Will you do your part by chipping in any amount to help?]( Together, we can win over rural and working-class voters and flip America’s Heartland BLUE. Sappers clear the way, Airborne all the way! --Richard No Dem Left Behind is a federal PAC focused on building a base of support for progressive values in rural America. We are committed to helping solve the issues that people in rural America face by creating a foundation of trust and helping great local leaders emerge to run for elected office. We provide a national platform for our endorsed Democratic candidates to increase their exposure and help them mount winning campaigns. 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