Gun control:
Senate panel OKS measure targeting straw purchases.
The Senate Judiciary Committee endorses legislation that would make the practice of illegally buying a gun for someone a felony.
WASHINGTON — In a possible harbinger of bipartisan support for a small piece of legislation to curb gun violence, the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday endorsed a measure that would make the practice of illegally buying a gun for someone else a felony, and increase penalties for the crime.
It was Congress’ first formal action on gun laws since the December massacre at a Newtown, Conn., elementary school sparked a renewed drive for gun-control legislation.
The measure, which addresses so-called straw purchasing, passed the committee 11 to 7, with Sen. Charles Grassley of Iowa the only Republican to vote in favor. Grassley’s nod on the measure, which already had two other Republican co-sponsors, was significant because he is the most senior member of the committee, made up of 10 Democrats and eight Republicans.
Grassley’s support followed weeks of negotia- tions. Earlier this week, the committee chairman, Sen. Patrick Leahy, DVt., introduced a modified version of the bill that blended his original proposal with a measure written by Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., and Mark Kirk, R-Ill. Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine also signed on to the measure, lending the bill the most GOP support of any gun control proposal currently being considered by Congress.
But other Republicans on the committee withheld their support, echoing the National Rifle Association’s contention that what was needed was not additional laws but better enforcement of already-existing statutes.
“My concern is this bill is a solution in search of a problem,” said Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas. “Straw-purchasing for purposes of directing guns to people who cannot legally obtain them is already a crime. And so we double down and say this time we really mean it, when in fact the real problem in many instances is the lack of prosecution of existing crimes by the Department of Justice.”