In the News

“In a letter to the Army Secretary on Friday, Representative Robert Garcia, a Democrat from California, said that ‘federal subsidies may be artificially increasing the availability of ammunition in the civilian marketplace and contributing to serious violence by private citizens.’ … Mr. Garcia cited The Times’s reporting, as well as a subsequently published Bloomberg article about Lake City … Earlier this month Mr. Garcia, along with Senators Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut and Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz of Florida, introduced a bill aimed at putting more controls on ammunition sales — which are largely unregulated — by requiring sellers to obtain a federal license and to conduct background checks on buyers. It would also limit bulk sales of ammunition and prevent so-called straw purchases, in which a buyer with a clean record turns around and sells to someone else.”

THE BUZZ: The old way of thinking for U.S. House members was simple: Try to keep a low profile and avoid hot-button partisan fights as you learn the ropes.

There are, of course, exceptions — and California Rep. Robert Garcia is trying hard to be one.

Since he was sworn in less than a year ago, Garcia has become a Beltway personality. He’s one of the California delegation’s most outspoken new members, frequently trading jabs with far-right colleagues. He’s also become a social media and cable news fixture.

"What we just witnessed over the past three weeks is what happens when extremists come into power: chaos," says Democratic Rep. Robert Garcia.

Now, other elected officials in both the House and Senate are dabbling in TikTok as part of a larger communications strategy. A recent video from Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., poked fun at Republican infighting over whether to allow then-House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to keep his job.