GOP leaders move slowly
Speaker of the House shows little interest in latest proposals
WASHINGTON >> House Speaker Paul Ryan on Tuesday showed little interest in stricter gun control proposals being floated in Congress, leaving the issue in the hands of wary Senate leaders and President Donald Trump, whose shifting views have left no clear strategy for legislative action.
As student survivors of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting lobbied lawmakers for tougher gun laws, Ryan acknowledged “system failures” in Florida that he said Congress should review.
But GOP leaders did not promise votes on the matter and stopped short of offering solutions, beyond a pending bill aimed at increasing participation in the existing federal background check system. The bill uses new incentives and penalties to encourage better compliance with current law, but does not expand the pool of gun buyers required to undergo background checks before buying a gun.
Even as he endorsed the measure, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell downplayed its significance, saying it would not be a “panacea” for the rash of gun violence.
But McConnell said he wanted to “at least show some progress toward dealing with one element of the problem.”
Republican leaders, who have majority control of the House and Senate, are reluctant to lead on legislation without knowing they have Trump’s full support and can rely on his popularity with a core flank of the GOP
electorate to shield them from political blowback.
But Trump, who is inviting lawmakers to the White House on Wednesday, has proven an inconsistent partner in such policy debate, including the issue of gun violence that has taken on fresh urgency since the Valentine’s Day assault that left 17 dead.
One of Trump’s top gun safety proposals after the Florida shooting — raising the age to purchase some rifles from 18 to 21 — receded after Trump lunched with leaders of the National Rifle Association last weekend. The idea had been promoted by TV personality Geraldo Rivera, who recently had dinner with Trump in Florida. But it was met with stiff resistance from the NRA.
Although Trump has been quiet about the idea in recent days, White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Tuesday that the president continues to support raising
the minimum age and expects that to be a topic of discussion when he meets with lawmakers.
But Rivera, a Trump ally, scolded the president on Twitter for appearing to back away from the proposal. “Incredibly we’re set to do nothing re gun control again,” Rivera tweeted. “The only person in the country strong enough to stand up to #NRA @realDonaldTrump is apparently taking a pass after dropping modest reform of banning sales of semi automatics to kids not old enough to buy cigarettes & beer.”
The Senate could vote this week on the legislation from Sens. John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Chris Murphy, D-Conn., to strengthen the National Instant Criminal Background Check System, though votes were not yet scheduled amid resistance from within the GOP ranks and demands by Democrats to vote on other measures.