60 Vote Threshold

Only for guns on trains:

The Senate voted Wednesday to permit passengers on the Amtrak passenger railroad to transport handguns in their checked baggage.

The proposal, approved by a 68-30 vote, seeks to give Amtrak riders rights comparable to those enjoyed by airline passengers, who are permitted to transport firearms provided that they declare they are doing so and that the arms are unloaded and in a securely locked container.

If you’ve ever been to an Amtrak station, you’ll know that there is next to no security, in stark contrast to the police state in effect at airports. But 68 of our brightest lights think it’s a good idea.

Comments

  1. anthony cardenas says:

    Whats too stop someone from smuggling a gun onboard underneath his coat???

    If someone wants to carry one in their luggage and let the authorites know about it, fine. Im more concerned about the guy that doesnt tell anybody about it.

  2. matt says:

    clearly the point is that at airports there are more security personnel to deal with people who have guns in the non-secure areas. train stations don’t have this, which is a problem if someone checks a gun in his train luggage, picks it up at baggage claim, and then opens fire or threatens to.

    beyond that, we can’t get 60 senators to do anything we need, but getting 68 so people can continue stroking their guns is no problem.

  3. sarabeth says:

    Here’s the funniest part. The existing Amtrak policy is no guns allowed in checked baggage or on board. As per Amtrak Chairman Thomas Carper, “Unlike the airline industry, Amtrak has no system in place for a uniform system of screening for weapons”. No one had regarded this as a problem so far, not anyone in Congress, not anyone in Amtrak.

    Now they’re changing the policy to allow guns in checked baggage. And it’s suddenly a huge problem that Amtrak has no realistic hope of putting a screening system in place in the next 6 months.

    By any reasonable standard, shouldn’t screening be a bigger issue when you have more stringent prohibitions?

  4. tom/pipecock says:

    god bless america!!! where would we be without the second amendment?! they can pry my gun from my cold dead asshole.