Proud of my senators @senjohnmccain & @jeffflake for voting yes to continued debate on reducing gun violence.Tucson deserves a vote.Thanks.
— Gabrielle Giffords (@GabbyGiffords) April 11, 2013
The U.S. Senate voted this morning to start debate on a bill that would expand background checks on gun sales. The bill that passed out of the Senate Judiciary Committee on a party-line vote would require background checks on nearly all gun sales, with some exceptions for family members and for temporary transfers for sporting and hunting events.
But a compromise brokered yesterday by Republican Sen. Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania and Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia would instead require background checks at gun shows and with online sales.
The NRA announced yesterday that it was opposed to the background-check compromise.
I’ve got a look at the background-check battle in this week’s print edition.
This article appears in Apr 11-17, 2013.
Oh boy – senate drafts a gun law that has less teeth than Granny Clampett!