Keystone blocked, too

I am writing this in response to Shawn Vestal’s May 11 column on gun control legislation. He is dismayed that legislation has been blocked in part because of the National Rifle Association. I find it interesting that he is dismayed only when his liberal agenda is derailed.

Looking at two blocked issues, gun control and the Keystone pipeline, we see that both are favored by a majority but both are blocked by effective advocacy groups, which are the NRA and the Natural Resources Defense Council. The NRA has 4.6 million members and the NRDC has 1.3 million members.

Shawn criticizes Republicans and moderate Democrats for caving in to the NRA. Shouldn’t President Obama and the liberals also be criticized for caving into a radical advocacy group and thwarting the will of the majority?

However, that would be the job of a professional journalist who might present a balanced view of important issues and not the job of a Democratic lobbyist who is an advocate of all things liberal. Which is Vestal?

William Rust

Wallace