While I'm disappointed at this outcome, I'd be interested in knowing what percentage of Republican voters y'all think would favor "repealing" the requirement for a permit to carry a handgun? I'd be surprised if the concept got 50% support even among Indiana Republican voters. (And you can play semantics all you want, but repealing the requirement is essentially what you'd be doing).
This outcome sucks - but I disagree with those calling these legislators RINOs. Being "not Libertarian" doesn't make you a RINO. In this case, it simply makes you a Republican. These guys are most likely representing Republican voters' interests to a tee. Most "R" voters are straight-laced people who prefer an "orderly" society. (Sunday alcohol sales? Who needs it?). How many cops on INGO even support it? "Carl Weathers" already said he wouldn't. Others are silent on the issue.
But regardless, we need to tune-up our understanding of what it means to be a Republican in Indiana. Up until relatively recently, most Indiana Republicans had been voting for Dick Lugar for years, and years, and years. Indiana is not a "Liberty" state. Indiana is a "significantly behind the rest of the country on social progressivism" state. It's not the same.
Yeah, pretty much.