A bipartisan coalition of 10 Democrat senators and 10 Republican senators announced a “breakthrough agreement on gun violence” early Sunday afternoon, and President Joe Biden has already signaled that he’s itching to sign it into law.
“I want to thank Senator Chris Murphy and the members of his bipartisan group—especially Senators Cornyn, Sinema, and Tillis—for their tireless work to produce this proposal. Obviously, it does not do everything that I think is needed, but it reflects important steps in the right direction, and would be the most significant gun safety legislation to pass Congress in decades,” the president said.
“With bipartisan support, there are no excuses for delay, and no reason why it should not quickly move through the Senate and the House. Each day that passes, more children are killed in this country: the sooner it comes to my desk, the sooner I can sign it, and the sooner we can use these measures to save lives.”
.@POTUS says he wants to sign the Senate gun agreement into law ASAP. “Each day that passes, more children are killed in this country: the sooner it comes to my desk, the sooner I can sign it, and the sooner we can use these measures to save lives.” pic.twitter.com/P8Z2xpQ8tC
— Sahil Kapur (@sahilkapur) June 12, 2022
According to a Twitter thread posted by Democrat Sen. Chris Murphy, who apparently is the lead member of the coalition, the bill will, among other things, fund red flag laws, provide money for mental health and school safety, close the “boyfriend loophole,” and require enhanced background checks for gun purchasers under 21.
It’ll also institute the first-ever “federal law against gun trafficking and straw purchasing.”
View the thread below:
🚨NEWS: We have a deal. Today a bipartisan group of 20 Senators (10 D and 10 R) is announcing a breakthrough agreement on gun violence – the first in 30 years – that will save lives.
I think you’ll be surprised at the scope of our framework.
1/ Here’s what it includes:
— Chris Murphy (@ChrisMurphyCT) June 12, 2022
2/ Major funding to help states pass and implement crisis intervention orders (red flag laws) that will allow law enforcement to temporarily take dangerous weapons away from people who pose a danger to others or themselves.
— Chris Murphy (@ChrisMurphyCT) June 12, 2022
3/ Billions in new funding for mental health and school safety, including money for the national build out of community mental health clinics.
— Chris Murphy (@ChrisMurphyCT) June 12, 2022
4/ Close the “boyfriend loophole”, so that no domestic abuser – a spouse OR a serious dating partner – can buy a gun if they are convicted of abuse against their partner.
— Chris Murphy (@ChrisMurphyCT) June 12, 2022
5/ First ever federal law against gun trafficking and straw purchasing. This will be a difference making tool to stop the flow of illegal guns into cities.
— Chris Murphy (@ChrisMurphyCT) June 12, 2022
6/ Enhanced background check for under 21 gun buyers and a short pause to conduct the check. Young buyers can get the gun only after the enhanced check is completed.
— Chris Murphy (@ChrisMurphyCT) June 12, 2022
7/ Clarification of the laws regarding who needs to register as a licensed gun dealer, to make sure all truly commercial sellers are doing background checks.
— Chris Murphy (@ChrisMurphyCT) June 12, 2022
8/ Will this bill do everything we need to end our nation’s gun violence epidemic? No. But it’s real, meaningful progress. And it breaks a 30 year log jam, demonstrating that Democrats and Republicans can work together in a way that truly saves lives.
— Chris Murphy (@ChrisMurphyCT) June 12, 2022
9/ So grateful to @JohnCornyn @kyrstensinema @SenThomTillis @SenToomey @Sen_JoeManchin @SenBlumenthal @SenatorCollins @LindseyGrahamSC @ChrisCoons @TeamHeinrich @BillCassidy and others for their amazing work to get us this far.
— Chris Murphy (@ChrisMurphyCT) June 12, 2022
10/ Drafting this law and passing it through both chambers will not be easy. We have a long way before this gets to the President’s desk. But with your help and activism, we can get this done. This time, failure cannot be an option.
— Chris Murphy (@ChrisMurphyCT) June 12, 2022
Despite what Murphy wrote in his final tweet about the difficulty of “drafting” and “passing” the bill, the fact remains that so long as 10 Senate Republicans remain aboard, the bill will absolutely make it through Congress.
The reason why is because Democrats only need the support of 10 Republicans to push it through the Senate. As for the House, Democrats need zero support from their political opponents to move any piece of legislation.
Plus, according to incoming reports, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, also a Republican, has signaled his own support for the bill:
Here’s another big one: McConnell says he supports the Cornyn/Murphy negotiations
“I appreciate their hard work on this important issue. The principles they announced today show the value of dialogue and cooperation”
— Burgess Everett (@burgessev) June 12, 2022
Is it an explicit endorsement of the framework? No, but his press release has this as its headline
“McConnell Supports Ongoing Cornyn, Murphy Bipartisan Negotiations”
— Burgess Everett (@burgessev) June 12, 2022
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a Democrat, has also expressed support for the bill.
“After an unrelenting wave of gun-related suicides and homicides, including mass shootings, the Senate is poised to act on commonsense reforms to protect Americans where they live, where they shop, and where they learn. We must move swiftly to advance this legislation because if a single life can be saved it is worth the effort,” he said in a statement cited by NBC News.
The ten Republicans in the bipartisan coalition include Sens. John Cornyn, Thom Tillis, Susan Collins, Bill Cassidy, Lindsey Graham, Pat Toomey, Roy Blunt, Richard Burr, Rob Portman, and Mitt Romney.
The ten Democrats meanwhile include Sens. Murphy, Kyrsten Sinema, Joe Manchin, Chris Coons, Martin Heinrich, Richard Blumenthal, Cory Booker, Mark Kelly, Angus King, and Debbie Stabenow.
Backlash is already beginning to brew against the 10 Republicans who participated in the coalition:
All 10 Republicans that are going to vote for this need to be primaried. This is a small compromise that won’t really do any substantial damage to gun rights, but I don’t care, no Republican should compromise on even the smallest proposals with the dems. Vote all 10 out. https://t.co/bMv4R4TrWD
— Korben Dallas 🇺🇸🦅🗽 (@korbendallasNYC) June 12, 2022
We need the names…to primary all of them.
— erarmas33 (@erarmas33) June 12, 2022
the regular RINOs 🤮🤮
— Biggi (@Biggi6671) June 12, 2022
“Republicans”
— HiRolla (@HiRolla67) June 12, 2022
Traitors
— Michelle (@FoxyLoxy333) June 12, 2022
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V. Saxena is a staff writer for BizPac Review with a decade of experience as a professional writer, and a lifetime of experience as an avid news junkie. He holds a degree in computer technology from Purdue University.
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