Washington – Ten years ago, the deadliest shooting at an American elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut wasn’t enough to surprise lawmakers to give up gun control.
The second deadliest shooting of its kind, in Waldale, Texas, in which at least 19 elementary school children were killed Tuesday, is unlikely.
Repeatedly Wednesday, Republican senators in the Capitol rejected the need to expand background checks on firearms purchases, rejected requests to restrict the use of AR-15s and other semi-automatic weapons, and generally raising their hands when the gun is raised. frequency. Mass shooting, suggesting that it was all a mental health issue.
“We have always had weapons and will continue to carry weapons,” Senator Tommy Tuberville (RA) told reporters, pointing to drugs in schools.
Gun violence appears to be on the rise because of the proliferation of guns in the United States. More than 45,000 Americans were killed in shooting in 2020 as the gun homicide rate rose 35%. It reached its highest level since 1994, according to the latest data from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. By 2020, gun violence has become the leading cause of death among children and adolescents Analysis of CDC data by University of Michigan researchers.
“I don’t know what a silver bullet is.”
– You. Mike Brown (R-Ind.)
Many GOP senators say the new gun laws will not stop mass hunting, regardless of structure. Some have suggested the so -called The laws of the red flag To prevent shootings, however, such a law in New York did not prevent a gunman from killing 10 people at a grocery store in Buffalo this month.
“I’m really studying the Columbine shootings,” Senator Steve Dines (R-Mont.) Told HuffPost. “Go back and look at these heinous and evil criminals – or the existing laws have been violated and in most cases the proposed laws will not stop the violence.”
Asked if he claims to remove firearms for teens who can buy assault rifles in Texas at age 18 but cannot afford to buy alcohol until age 21, Senator sen said. Mike Rounds (RSD) said, “Most teenagers, you will never have a problem like this.”
“Remember, we have banned the carrying of weapons in schools. “We’ve made ourselves cruel – homicides – illegal,” Rounds added.
Senator Kevin Kramer (RND) defended the ability of Americans to acquire AR-15 rifles, the most popular weapon used by mass shooters, even though they were not available at the time of writing the Second Amendment.
“I don’t know that our ancestors didn’t anticipate the day when the government and criminals, law enforcement and citizens will have access to all sorts of more sophisticated systems,” Kramer said.
Asked how his constituents would respond if he supported the gun control law, Kramer said he was “probably fired.” But he rejected the idea that Republicans are afraid of the National Arms Association.
“It’s not the NRA, it’s gun owners, individual gun owners,” he said.
Senator Mitt Romney (R-Utah) said his position has not changed; It supports the improvement of background checks and the abandonment of gun laws in the states.
Calls for better background checks have been the default response to high-profile shootings for several years. Under current law, licensed firearm sellers are required to contact the FBI’s National Criminal Investigation System to verify that a buyer has no criminal record. But people who are not professionally selling firearms should not be licensed and should not be checked when selling firearms.
The House of Representatives passed two bipartisan background check bills last year. A bill would extend background checks to such private sales by requiring the parties to have an authorized reseller conduct background checks. The second will extend the three -day waiting period if the background check system does not respond immediately.
Democrats have taken steps to include the law in the Senate calendar this week, but the Senate is unlikely. Get taxes until next month, The first. Lawmakers are leaving the city on Thursday for a preprogrammed two -week break.
Senators on both sides are extremely pessimistic about the possibilities of any arms control compromise. Passing the new law would require at least 10 Republican votes, but the GOP is broadly opposed to almost all gun restrictions.
“I don’t know what a silver bullet is,” Senator Mike Brown (R-Ind.) Said. “I think it’s the duty of all of us to be open -minded and see what makes sense.”
Source: Huffpost
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.