Controversial gun legislation cleared a key
Senate hurdle Thursday, as lawmakers voted 68-31 to start debate on the
package which includes expanded background checks and new penalties for gun
trafficking.
Senate Democrats, joined by 16 Republicans,
were able to overcome an attempted filibuster by GOP senators opposed to the
current bill. Those senators could still slow-walk the debate, but the Senate
will eventually begin votes on amendments — one of which is considered
crucial to winning support for a final vote.
Though the bill cleared a 60-vote hurdle on
Thursday, supporters will likely have to corral another 60-vote majority when
it comes time to call a final vote, which Democrats acknowledged is a heavy
lift.
The White House called Thursday’s tally an
“important” but “early milestone,” as both sides of the
issue prepare for a grueling debate.
The amendment likely to be at the front of the
line is one from Sens. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Pat Toomey, R-Pa., which
would scale back the call for universal background checks. The plan would
expand checks to gun-show and Internet sales, but exempt certain personal
transactions.
The National Rifle Association and other
gun-rights supporters voiced concern about the new proposal, saying it still
goes too far. But the plan, offered by two lawmakers who are at the
conservative end of their respective parties, could help ease opposition
ahead of a final vote.
If the bill ultimately passes the Senate, it
would still have to pass the Republican-dominated House.
“The hard work starts now,” Senate
Majority Leader Harry Reid said after Thursday’s vote.
He assured Democrats that a proposal to renew
the assault weapons ban and a ban on high-capacity magazines would get a vote
as an amendment, though it was dropped from the main bill amid intense
opposition. The main bill also includes a measure to increase school safety
funding.
Reid lost two Democrats in Thursday’s vote –
Sen. Mark Pryor, D-Ark., and Sen. Mark Begich, D-Alaska, both lawmakers from
states with a strong tradition of gun ownership.
More than a dozen Republican senators for days
had threatened to hold up the bill Thursday. They voiced concern that the
proposal — namely, the background checks provision — would infringe on
Second Amendment rights and impose a burden on law-abiding gun owners. They
also expressed frustration that, while Manchin and Toomey touted their
compromise measure, the bill on the table Thursday did not yet include that.
Rather, it included a stricter background checks provision.
“Because the background-check measure is
the centerpiece of this legislation it is critical that we know what is in
the bill before we vote on it,” Sens. Rand Paul, R-Ky.; Ted Cruz,
R-Texas; and Mike Lee, R-Utah, said in a statement. “The American people
expect more and deserve better.”
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/04/11/gun-bill-clears-senate-hurdle-as-filibuster-falls-short/#ixzz2QCLveCHj
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