Sen. deal on no-fly, no-buy survives vote to kill move

WASHINGTON — A compromise bill to prevent people on the no-fly list from buying guns survived a Senate vote yesterday, but won only eight Republican supporters — an ominous sign for its future.

The proposal by Sen. Susan Collins, (R-Maine), has been characterized by its supporters as the bipartisan deal that could result in Senate action to keep guns out of the hands of terrorists. Collins introduced the legislation to fanfare after the Senate defeated four gun control measures in the wake of gunman Omar Mateen’s murder of 49 people at an Orlando, Fla., nightclub.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, (R-Ky.), made a parliamentary maneuver to kill Collins’ legislation yesterday but it survived on a 52-46 vote. That is still far less, though, than the 60 votes necessary to win Senate passage.

The Senate vote came right after House Democrats ended their sit-in on the floor of the House of Representatives to demand action on gun control.

Sen. John Cornyn, (R-Texas), said the bill would not give people a court hearing before their right to buy a gun is taken away — potentially after being mistakenly added to a terror list.

Collins’ bill would restrict gun purchases by the 109,000 people — about 2,800 of them U.S. citizens — on the federal no-fly list or the “selectee” list, which means they undergo additional screening before boarding planes.

People denied guns under Collins’ measure could appeal the decision in court.