‘ INACTION NOT AN OPTION’
Connecticut bans terror suspects from buying guns.
NEW YORK • With them ass shooting in California last week focusing attention on terrorism and guns, Gov. D annel Malloy of Connecticut announced Thursday that he would sign an executive order that would bar people on federal terrorism watch lists from buying firearms in the state.
Malloy said Connecticut would become the first U.S. state to have such a measure.
“Like all Americans, I have been horrified by the recent terrorist attacks in San Bernardino and Paris,” said Malloy, a Democrat. “This should be a wake-up call to all of us. This is a moment to seize in America — and today I’m here to say that we in Connecticut are seizing it.”
Connecticut already has some of the strictest gun laws in the country, including measures enacted in 2013 after the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown in 2012. In that attack, a gunman killed 20 schoolchildren and six staff before killing himself.
On the federal level, mass shootings have failed to prompt any action on guns.
Sunday, President Barack Obama, in a televised address to the nation on the threat of terrorism, called for federal regulations that would bar those on the federal no-fly list from buying guns.
“What could possibly be the argument for allowing a terrorist suspect to buy a semi-automatic weapon?” Obama said. “This is a matter of national security.”
Support for such a measure has split largely along party lines. Last week, a measure that would have expanded background checks for people who wanted to buy guns was defeated in the Senate. All four
Inaction is not an option. So here in Connecticut, we are acting
Republican senators who are running for president — Ted Cruz, Lindsey Graham, Rand Paul and Marco Rubio — voted against it.
It remains unclear whether and how Connecticut would gain access to the names on the federal watch lists. Devon Puglia, a s pokesman f or Malloy, said the governor’s office was “working with the federal government to use federal watch lists for this specific purpose.”
In his announcement, Malloy said people on terrorism watch lists tried to buy guns and explosives in the U.S. 2,233 times in 2004-14, according to FBI data. They succeeded 2,043 times.
“I have previously written to Congress on this matter,” he said. “But inaction is not an option. So here in Connecticut, we are acting.”
Obama is also trying to act, without the help of Congress. The president’s advisers are finalizing a proposal that would expand background checks on gun sales without its approval.
White House adviser Valerie Jarrett says the president has asked his team to complete a proposal and submit it for his review “in short order.” She says the recommendations will include measures to expand background checks.