House votes to sharply expand concealed-carry gun rights
WASHINGTON — The House on Wednesday easily passed a sweeping expansion of the right to carry concealed firearms virtually anywhere in the country, putting the fate of the National Rifle Association’s top legislative priority in the hands of a divided Senate.
To win over Democrats, House Republicans paired themeasure, which would require all states to recognize any other state’s concealedcarry permit, with a more modest bipartisan fix meant to incentivize better reporting of legal and mental health records to the national backgroundcheck system.
Together, the measures were the first gun-related bill to pass through the chamber since two of the deadliest mass shootings in the United States, in Las Vegas and Sutherland Springs, Texas, in the fall.
But the fate of the bill remains uncertain. The background check measure was not enough to win over most Democrats who accused Republicans of “trickery” and “sabotage” in tying the two bills together, nor did it persuade law enforcement officials in some of the largest cities, including New York, who say the legislation would force locales with strict gun laws to bow to places with few or no gun restrictions.
In the Senate, Democrats have said the combination bill is a nonstarter, and senior Republicans have said that pairing the bills could torpedo them both.
The final House vote was 231-198, with six Democrats in favor of and 14 Republicans against the bill.
Passage in the Senate would almost certainly require 60 votes to overcome a Democratic filibuster, and although several Democrats have expressed support in the past, the climb for the NRA will be steep.
The Senate Judiciary Committee debated its own response to the shootings in Texas and Nevada Wednesday and appeared willing to move forward with a background check bill. But Senate leaders seemed disinclined to take up the concealed-carry measure anytime soon.
House Republicans and gun rights activists celebrated the concealed-carry vote anyway, hailing it as an important step toward victory in a decadeslong fight to extend concealed carry and simplify the rules for gun owners.
Chris Cox, the NRA’s executive director, praised the vote as a “watershed moment” for Second Amendment-rights.
“This bill ensures that all law-abiding citizens in our great country can protect themselves in the manner they see fit without accidentally running afoul of the law,” he said.
Democrats said the measure would jeopardize public safety and set a dangerous precedent for overriding states’ rights to determine their own laws.
“The answer to our national problem of gun violence is not that we need more people carrying concealed firearms on our streets,” said Rep. Jerrold Nadler of New York, the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee.
The House bill would not force states to change their own laws, but it would treat a concealed-carry permit like a driver’s license, allowing individuals permitted by any one state to carry a concealed weapon with them into any other state.
It would also allow visitors to national parks, wildlife refuges and other federally administered lands to legally carry concealed guns. And it carves out a provision that would let qualified permit holders carry concealed guns in school zones.
Toomey tapped for taxes
Pennsylvania Sen. Pat Toomey on Wednesday night was tapped by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to serve on the Tax Reform Conference Committee that will hammer out the final tax cut legislation to be sent to the president.
Mr. Toomey, who was considered instrumental in the shaping and passing of the tax bill in the Senate last week, will be one of eight Senate Republicans taking part in the negotiations with members of the House of Representatives Conference Committee.
Mr. Toomey’s appointment came after the Senate voted 51-47 to formally begin negotiations with the House in an effort to reconcile their two tax bills.
Government shutdown
Congress seemed on track Wednesday to approving legislation that would avert a partial government shutdown over the weekend as all sides seemed ready to avert a confrontation — for now.
Increasingly confident House leaders planned a Thursday vote on a bill that would keep federal agencies functioning through Dec. 22, and Senate approval was expected to follow.
Trump Jr. questioned
Donald Trump Jr. met behind closed doors for roughly seven hours Wednesday with the House Intelligence Committee, fielding extensive questioning about contacts he had with Russians during the 2016 campaign.
Travel ban hearing
Two days after the Supreme Court allowed President Donald Trump to enforce his travel ban, a federal appeals court appeared skeptical that it complied with the law.
Suit over Bears Ears
Outdoor company Patagonia has sued to block Mr. Trump’s cuts to Utah’s Bears Ears National Monument.