In a possible revelation to the first major U.S. gun law in decades, a bipartisan Senate announced Sunday a deal on a framework for a firearms bill with enough Republican support to move narrowly. divided Senate. The plan, praised by US President Joe Biden, includes support for state laws on the “red flag” that keeps guns from potentially dangerous individuals, stricter criminal history checks for firearms buyers under the age of 21, and crackdowns on “markets.” of straw ”by people who buy firearms for others who could not pass a history check. Built after last month’s massacre at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, and at a supermarket in Buffalo, New York, the framework is far less ambitious than the proposals made by Biden and other Democrats to ban semi-automatic assault weapons. and high-capacity magazines or at least increase the minimum age limit for their purchase from 18 to 21. The announcement came a day after tens of thousands demonstrated in Washington and around the United States to demand that lawmakers pass legislation aimed at curbing gun violence. Although the agreement represents a major breakthrough, it does not guarantee that legislation will be passed, as lawmakers still have to find legislative language that can secure enough votes to pass both the Senate and the House of Representatives. which are closely controlled by Democrats. The Republican opposition is critical of thwarting decades of Democratic-backed gun control in Congress dating back to the 1994 vote on a weapons embargo that expired a decade later. Sunday’s announcement, however, still marks the most distant development of talks on a gun measure in Congress since 2013, following a Connecticut school massacre when gun control legislation failed in the Senate. “Our plan saves lives while protecting the constitutional rights of law-abiding Americans,” said the negotiating team, led by Connecticut Democrat Chris Murphy and Texas Republican John Cornyn. “We look forward to gaining broad, bipartisan support and legislating our proposal with common sense.” The group that agreed to the framework included 10 Republicans, nine Democrats and an independent who is on a Democratic parliamentary group. The United States has the highest rate of gun deaths among the richest countries in the world. But it is a country where many love gun rights, and a second amendment to its constitution protects the right to “bear and bear arms.”
FILIBUSTER LIMIT
With 10 Republicans signaling support, that would be enough to overcome the Senate rule on “filibuster,” which requires 60 of the 100 senators to agree to pass more legislation. Republicans who oppose the plan are expected to create procedural obstacles in an effort to prevent it. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell did not embrace the framework. “I am pleased that Senators Cornyn and Murphy continue to make progress in their discussions,” McConnell said, adding that he hoped the talks would advance “key issues such as mental health and school safety” in a way that “respects the Second amendment”. Biden welcomed Sunday’s agreement. “It does not do everything I think is needed, but it reflects important steps in the right direction and would be the most important gun safety legislation to be passed in Congress in decades,” Biden said in a statement. “With bipartisan support, there are no excuses for the delay, no reason why it should not go quickly to the Senate and Parliament.” Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi last week voiced confidence in Senate negotiators despite her desire for stricter gun control restrictions. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Sumer said he wanted to pass a bill as soon as the details were settled. The deal, reached after weeks of intense negotiations, will provide federal funding to encourage states to pass “red flag” laws that keep guns out of the hands of those deemed by the courts to be a significant risk to themselves. them or others. Congress will provide more funding to expand mental health programs, including those running in schools, and will fight those who evade gun licensing requirements or buy illegal weapons on behalf of third parties – transactions known as “straw purchases.” The plan would also require new government controls on people under the age of 21 trying to buy weapons so that minors’ mental health records could be reviewed, along with controls by state and local law enforcement authorities. “We are grateful to the bipartisan Senate team that worked on this compromise. Thank you for finding common ground that saves lives,” said David Hogg, a 2018 Florida high school shooting survivor and co-founder of The Rally Organizing Team. Saturday. Hogg added that even more is needed, including the need for a background check on each national arms market, saying the bill “should be the beginning, not the end, of Congress.” (Report by Richard Cowan in Washington and Brendan O’Brien in Chicago; Edited by Will Dunham and Scott Malone)
I want to thank Senator Chris Murphy and the bipartisan group for their proposal on gun safety. It does not do everything I think is needed, but it does reflect important steps in the right direction. With bipartisan support, there are no excuses for delay. Let’s do that. – President Biden (@POTUS) June 12, 2022
