WANTED -- Suspects in Conspiracy to Aid & Abet Mass Murder of Children
Rabbi Arthur Waskow | 2/18/2018
To Aid & Abet
Mass Murder of Children
(These
suspects are defined by our understanding of religious and ethical
morality, not yet by formal legal process. See below the Torah of
selling weapons to people prone to violence and of conspiring to do so.
Suspect: Donald Trump
Known recent locations:
1600 Pennsylvania Ave NW,
Washington DC.
Mar a Lago Club
1100 S Ocean Blvd, Palm Beach, FL 33480
Suspect: Mitchell McConnell
Known recent locations:
United States Senate
317 Russell Senate Office Building, Washington, DC 20510
Fax: 202-224-2499
601 W. Broadway, Room 630, Louisville, KY 40202
Phone: 502-582-6304
Suspect: Paul Ryan
Known recent locations:
United States House of Representatives
H-232 The Capitol
Washington, DC 20515
Phone: (202) 225-0600
Fax: (202) 225-20125
1233 Longworth House Office Bldg
Washington, DC 20515
Phone: (202) 225-3031
Fax: (202) 225-3393
5031 7th Avenue
Kenosha, WI 53140
Phone: (262) 654-1901
Fax: (262) 654-2156
Anyone having information on the present whereabouts of these suspects should call the FBI.
Evidentiary elements:
A reported $9.6 million went from the National Rifle Association during the presidential campaign of 2016 towards pro-Trump ads and promotional material, and another $12 million went on ads attacking Hillary Clinton’s campaign.
Other sources put that figure even higher, closer to $30 million.
Trump speaking to NRA: Donald Trump marked his 99th day as US president (April 27, 2017) by making a pledge to the National Rifle Association: “You came through for me and I am going to come through for you.”
Other suspects: US Senator for Florida Marco Rubio has received $3,303,355 from the NRA as a politician.
US Senator for Iowa Joni Ernst, has received $3,124,273 from the NRA over the course of her career.
For details on other NRA contributions to politicians, see
https://www.opensecrets.org/or
TORAH OBLIGATION IN REGARD TO SALES OF WEAPONS:
Maimonides (Mishneh Torah, Laws of a Murderer 12:12, paraphrasing Babylonian Talmud Avodah Zarah 15b) declares: “It is forbidden to sell weapons of war to [those with an inclination to violence]. Nor is it permitted to sharpen their spears, or to sell them knives, manacles, iron chains, bears, lions, or any object which can endanger the public; but it is permitted to sell them shields which are only for defense.”
Maimonides explains that in selling arms to such a person, “One strengthens the hands of an evil-doer and causes him to transgress” and “Anyone who causes one who is [morally] blind with regard to a matter to stumble–or one who strengthens the hand of a person who is [morally] blind and does not see the path of truth because of the desire of his heart -- violates a negative precept as Torah (Lev. 19:14) states, ‘You shall not put a stumbling block before the blind.’”
Modern legislative efforts to carry out this precept have seen laws proposed to require stronger and broader universal background checks before sales of guns or ammunition to anyone, and proposals to ban entirely the sale of semi-automatic weapons.
But -- Mr. Trump’s newly unveiled budget would cut millions of dollars from the National Instant Criminal Background Check System, which gun dealers use to verify if someone is banned from buying a gun before selling it to them.
Buried on Page 719 of his fiscal year 2019 budget, released last Monday, the president calls for cuts to the National Criminal Records History Improvement Program and the NICS Act Record Improvement Program. Both provide federal grants to states to help them improve their reporting of criminal records and protection orders to the national database for background checks, including domestic violence records.
The two programs are currently budgeted at $73 million. Trump’s budget proposal for the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1 would slash their funding to $61 million, which amounts to a 16 percent cut.
