A gun control scheme was thwarted on Tuesday by the Republican-led House Appropriations Committee after Democrats tried to take advantage of a deranged man’s hate crime in Charleston, South Carolina, last week. Only 19 members voted for an amendment filed by Rep. Nita Lowey (D-NY) that would have given the Centers for Disease Control the authority to prescribe “gun violence” remedies compared to 32 against. Lowey claimed, “This is not about a gun registry. There is no gun confiscation. There is absolutely no harm to the Second Amendment. This is about research. My amendment is about research, nothing more.” Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) likewise noted, “The notion that somehow research is our enemy is just wrong-headed. And for people to chip away at our ability to investigate efforts that are about public health and prevention, is wrong-headed. There is no reason not to fund this research.” In truth, the agency is not banned from conducting said research; what it can’t do is suggest strategies (read: gun control proposals) for curtailing violence involving firearms. And that’s the point of contention for Democrats. If the CDC can somehow pin the weapon as the disease — a ludicrous suggestion in itself — the government then has even more authority to restrict gun rights. It’s just one of the many reasons why expanding background checks is a dangerous proposition.