Dems urge curbs on firearms
Mcconnell accused of waiting for shooting headlines to fade
WASHINGTON — Democrats pressed Senate Majority Leader
Mitch Mcconnell on Tuesday to approve House-passed legislation expanding background checks and to take other steps curbing guns.
It seemed unlikely that Democrats’ moves would have much impact on top Republicans.
While President Donald Trump and Mcconnell have expressed a new openness to unspecified gun curbs after the back-to-back mass shootings in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio, their decisions will reflect the sentiment of fellow Republicans, not pressure tactics by Democrats.
Mcconnell, R-KY., came under the sharpest attacks at a news conference held by No. 2 House Democratic leader Steny Hoyer, D-MD., five other House Democrats and gun activists and survivors of shootings.
Rep. Don Beyer, D-VA., said Mcconnell hadn’t moved gun curb legislation because “he’s waiting for the outrage to die down, the headlines to change, the people to turn the page and think about something else.” Congress is out of town on recess until a week after Labor Day.
Hoyer resorted to reading lyrics from “Blowin’ in the Wind,” Bob Dylan’s 1962 song. “How many deaths will it take till he knows that too many people have died,” Hoyer said.
Rep. Anthony Brown, D-MD., cited statistics on the thousands of gun fatalities annually and said, “In the face of this epidemic, Mitch Mcconnell is doing nothing.”
Trump told reporters in New Jersey on Tuesday that he’s “convinced that Mitch wants to do something” on guns. He added, “He wants to do background checks and I do too.”
Trump also said he had “a very good conversation” with Sen. Chris Murphy, D-conn., a gun control advocate.
Trump provided no specifics, and it was unclear how tough a background check measure Republicans might consider. Mcconnell said earlier this month that background checks and “red flags” — bills helping authorities remove guns from unstable people — would “probably lead the discussion.”
“What we can’t do is fail to pass something,” Mcconnell said. “What I want to see here is an outcome.”
Hoyer said the Democratic-run House Judiciary Committee will consider gun control legislation, but he stopped short of saying they would hold votes. He said the panel could discuss measures banning assault weapons and high-capacity magazines and making it easier for authorities to confiscate guns from unstable people.