Good morning Her Campus! With a break-neck news cycle, there is no possible way for you to stay on top of every story that comes across your feeds—we’re all only human, after all.
But, life comes at you fast. So grab a cup of coffee and settle in for this quick and dirty guide to stories you might’ve been sleeping on (like, literally. It’s early.)
Trump Orders Justice Department to Create Bump Stock Regulations
Following last week’s shooting that killed 17 at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, the New York Times reports that President Trump has ordered the Justice Department to issue regulations banning bump stocks, devices used to semiautomatic guns into fully automatic weapons. In a tweet on Tuesday evening, Trump also called for Democrats and Republicans to work together to strengthen background checks — both of which are surprising coming from a president who has previously given his full public support of gun rights and organizations like the NRA.
That being said, many gun control advocates see his apparent change of heart as relatively insignificant. The NRA actually supports some background checks for gun buyers, and some regulation on bump stocks — though not a full ban as described by Trump’s reportedly proposed regulations.
Whether we are Republican or Democrat, we must now focus on strengthening Background Checks!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 21, 2018
Some Conservatives Are Trying to Use Conspiracy Theories to Discredit Shooting Survivors
After multiple teenagers who survived the Parkland, Florida shooting have taken to Twitter and cable news shows to plead with lawmakers, asking for stricter gun regulation, some conservatives have responded by attempting to discredit survivors using conspiracy theories. Among these “theories” are suggestions that liberal activists are using the students to push their left-wing agenda, and some, including an aide to Republican Florida state Rep. Shawn Harrison, have even gone as far as to accuse the students of being, “actors that travel to various crisis when they happen.” To make matters worse, many took notice on Tuesday that Donald Trump Jr. had even liked some of these offensive theories that belittle the trauma these students have been through. Yikes.
“I’m not a crisis actor. I’m somebody that had to witness this and live through this and I continue to have to do that,” says Florida student David Hogg in response to conspiracy theories being written about him https://t.co/JruN0GWMRD https://t.co/j8VoIwj4ma
— Anderson Cooper 360° (@AC360) February 21, 2018
Chloe Kim Posed With Her Dog on the Cover of ‘Sports Illustrated’ & It’s EVERYTHING
We already knew we loved Chloe Kim just based on her *iconic* comments about not wanting to cry at the Olympics and ruin her makeup — and now we’ve found yet another reason to love her even more. The Olympic gold medalist appears on the most recent cover of Sports Illustrated, alongside none other than her favorite furry friend: her dog Reese. The best part? Reese is rocking Chloe’s olympic medal, like the very good girl she is.
What to look out for…
Tomorrow is National Margarita Day, because it may not be summer just yet, but we can pretend like it is now that we have the perfect excuse to consume plenty tequila and frozen lime juice. If that’s not a reason to make it to the end of the week, IDK what is.