I suspect that Tom is right with his Bold DOPA Prediction, that the bill will just die of neglect this fall having served it’s purpose.
It was a tidy little political move for the Republicans, leveraging a hot topic in the tv news, reinforcing their “BE VERY AFRAID” message, and forcing Democrats to either vote “no” and leave themselves open to a 30 second attack ad painting them as objectively pro-predator or vote “yes” and yet again sell out their base. Plus it has subsequently distracted a few people who might otherwise be attacking the Republicans on the war, actual ongoing affronts to our civil rights or the environment.
Unfortunately, he’s also right that the “be very afraid” message underlying the proposal will continue to be a political tool for the foreseeable future.