House Passes Gun Bill But Focus Is on Negotiations in Senate

9 Jun 2022

(Bloomberg) -- The House passed a package of gun legislation Wednesday, a mostly symbolic action that ultimately will be set aside for whatever compromise plan emerges from bipartisan negotiations in the Senate.

By Jarrell Dillard and Emily Wilkins

Jun 9, 2022, 12:25 AM - Updated on Jun 9, 2022, 12:25 AM

Word Count: 725

The bill passed Wednesday includes several proposals that would raise the minimum age to purchase many semiautomatic rifles to 21 from 18, restrict sales of large-capacity ammunition magazines and set federal standards for the safe storage of firearms, among other provisions. The vote was 223-204, with five Republicans voting for the bill and two Democrats opposing it.The House action was prompted by the massacre of 19 school children and two teachers in Uvalde, Texas, two weeks ago and the racist attack in Buffalo, New York, that killed 10 Black people at a grocery store a little over a week before.

Just hours before the vote, survivors and relatives of victims of the two shootings made emotional pleas for congressional action on gun violence at a hearing of the House Oversight and Reform Committee.

Despite the Uvalde and Buffalo killings and other recent mass shootings, Republicans in Congress are resisting any measure that they say would restrict the rights of law-abiding gun owners.

The Senate talks are focusing on grants to states to set up “red flag” laws, which allow courts to temporarily remove guns from people who authorities believe could hurt others or themselves, strengthening juvenile background checks for gun purchases, providing money for mental health services and bolstering school security.

Democratic Representative David Cicilline of Rhode Island said before the vote that House Democrats were ready to pass whatever deal emerges from the Senate talks led by Democrat Chris Murphy of Connecticut and Republican John Cornyn of Texas.

“We all understand we have got to make some progress on this issue,” he said.

Murphy said the Senate group met in person for the first time on Wednesday and said they were making progress. He also said that the original deadline to complete the negotiations by the end of this week won’t be met and that they are now looking at July 4.

“To do that we need to move expeditiously,” he said. “But this would be a big, historic deal and we need to get it right.”

GOP Senator John Thune of South Dakota said Republicans are negotiating “in good faith” but that getting the votes needed to pass any gun legislation will depend on the the details put forward. “This is not simple stuff,” he said.

“We know that there are negotiations going on in the Senate and we are prayerful about those. And hopefully we can make some advancement,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said ahead of the vote.“Right now in the eyes of survivors, and indeed all Americans, to see if we have the courage, the commitment and the conviction to protect the children.”

Ohio Republican Representative Jim Jordan said “the answer is not to destroy the Second Amendment, but that’s where the Democrats want to go.”

“Protecting our kids is important, yes it is, but this bill doesn’t do it,” Jordan said. “What this bill does is take away second amendment rights, God given rights protected by our constitution, from law abiding American citizens.”

Everytown for Gun Safety, which advocates gun-safety measures, is backed by Michael Bloomberg, founder and majority owner of Bloomberg LP.

Some House Democrats facing tough races this November expressed frustration before the vote that leaders were putting multiple proposals in one package instead of as separate pieces of legislation.

Representative Mikie Sherrill, a New Jersey Democrat, said that some of the ideas in the package could win more Republican support but voting on all them in a single piece of legislation makes bipartisan action more difficult.

“As we’re trying to find our way forward, why, why in the House wouldn’t we take these individual votes and really narrowly craft them so we can see if there is any possibility of movement?” Sherrill said Tuesday in an interview.

The five Republicans who voted for the bill were Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, Adam Kinzinger of Illinois, Fred Upton of Michigan, Chris Jacobs of New York and Anthony Gonzalez of Ohio. Kinzinger, Upton, Jacobs and Gonzalez aren’t seeking reelection.

The two Democratic no votes were cast by Jared Golden of Maine and Kurt Schrader of Oregon.

--With assistance from Laura Litvan and Steven T. Dennis.

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