Buzzfeed confirms that the shooter passed a background check:
Thomas Faison, a spokesman for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, told BuzzFeed News Wednesday that investigators had recovered a Glock 19 pistol that belonged to Flanagan.
Faison said the gun had been purchased “weeks ago,” and that he had apparently passed a required background check.
They pretty much always do.
Why does this matter? Well, because Terry McAuliffe today suggested that this incident showed the need for background checks on private sales. Because Hillary Clinton said that we need to “do something” — most likely extend the background check system. Because the White House once again proposed “sensible” gun control. Because a host of instant experts on social media suggested that if we Second Amendment advocates would get on board with reform, this could have been prevented.
And what do these people want, when pushed? They want an “assault weapons” ban; they want a magazine-size limit; and they want background checks on private sales. And, clearly, they are quite happy to point to this incident in order to make their case. But, as we now know, this shooting has nothing to do with any of these things. The killer used a Glock 19 handgun, which is not an “assault weapon” in any universe. He fired eight shots in total. And he bought his gun legally from a dealer. In other words, he did nothing that even intersects with their coveted laws. Once again, one gets the horrible impression that the gun-control movement is in possession of a laundry list of desires, and that they bring it out whenever anything bad happens, relevance be damned . . .