Ted Cruz and John Cornyn, Texas’s two senators, share similar views on gun control.
The political arm of the National Rifle Association has given each of them an “A+” grade. Both have resisted measures to tighten weapons laws, such as banning assault rifles and limiting the sale of high-capacity magazines.
However, in the aftermath of the horrific shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, on Tuesday — the second-deadliest Primary and secondary school gun massacre in American history — Cornyn and Cruz have adopted starkly different tones while playing opposing roles.
Cornyn, the state’s senior senator, was set to speak at the NRA annual convention in Houston on Friday. He left before the incident because he needed to be in Washington for personal reasons, according to a spokeswoman.
John Cornyn Has Urged Democrats To Talk About Gun Laws
Major Republican contributors, including those who have given to Gov. Greg Abbott’s campaigns, have signed an open letter advocating legislative action to tighten gun laws in reaction to the horrific murder in Uvalde last week that killed 19 children and two teachers.
The letter, which will be published as a full-page ad in the Dallas Morning News on Sunday, supports “red flag” regulations, expanded background checks, and raised the age to buy a gun to 21. It was signed by over 250 self-proclaimed gun aficionados.
The letter expresses support for John Cornyn, a senior senator from Texas who has been appointed to head bipartisan talks in Congress on prospective gun control legislation. Todd Maclin, a retired senior executive at J.P. Morgan Chase who currently leads the Dallas-based finance business Maclin Management, paid for the letter. Maclin described himself as a conservative gun owner who has been moved to action by the Uvalde massacre.
