The approach is significantly less ambitious than the president’s and other Democrats’ demands to prohibit semi-automatic, assault-style firearms or at least raise the purchase age to 21.
A bipartisan group of senators has hailed a potential breakthrough that might lead to the first big new gun law in the United States in decades.
The framework for a weapons safety law is a response to the mass shootings that occurred last month, but the idea falls well short of the stronger measures that President Joe Biden and many Democrats have long advocated.
The plan includes support for state “red flag” laws that restrict access to firearms by potentially dangerous individuals, stricter criminal background checks for gun buyers under the age of 21, and a crackdown on “straw purchases” by individuals who buy firearms for others who fail background checks.
President Biden and other Democrats have called for a ban on semi-automatic assault rifles and high-capacity magazines or at the very least a 21-year-old minimum purchase age.
In a statement, the president stated that the framework “does not do everything that I believe is necessary, but it reflects substantial steps in the right direction and would be the most significant gun safety legislation to pass Congress in decades”.
The suspects who murdered 10 black people at a grocery store in Buffalo and 19 kids and two instructors at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, were both 18 years old, as have been many of the perpetrators of mass shootings in recent years.
After three weeks of vigorous negotiations, Democratic Senator Chris Murphy and Republican Senator John Cornyn stated that “the heavy lifting is behind us,” but that “much work” remains.
Mr. Murphy stated that he anticipated Senate approval by early August or earlier.
“We will begin drafting (legislative) legislation first thing on Monday morning,” he told Reuters.
A day after tens of thousands of people demonstrated in Washington DC and across the United States to push politicians to approve legislation to prevent gun violence, the agreement was announced.
Despite being a significant achievement, the agreement does not guarantee that the law will be passed.
Legislators must still craft legislation wording that can garner enough votes to pass in both the Democratic-controlled Senate and House of Representatives.
Twenty senators, including ten Republicans, issued a statement urging the plan’s adoption.
This could be critical because the largest impediment to adopting the proposal is likely to be in the 50-50 Senate, where at least 10 Republican votes will be required to reach the standard 60-vote approval threshold.
The legislators stated, “Families are fearful, and it is our responsibility to work together to restore their sense of safety and security in their communities.”
What does the framework include?
• The deal would make juvenile records of gun purchasers younger than 21 years old accessible during background checks
• States will receive funding to establish and implement “red flag” legislation that makes it easier to temporarily seize firearms from potentially violent individuals, as well as monies to boost school safety and mental health programs.
• Some people who sell guns for profit would be required to obtain federal dealers’ licenses, which would require them to conduct background checks on purchasers. • Convicted domestic abusers who do not live with a former partner, such as estranged ex-boyfriends, would be barred from purchasing firearms, and it would be a crime to legally purchase a firearm for someone who would not qualify for ownership.
Supporters of gun limits, including Brady, Everytown for Gun Safety, and March for Our Lives, which organized the nationwide marches staged on Saturday, promptly praised the accord.
The National Rifle Association stated in a statement that it opposes gun regulation and restrictions on people’s “basic right to protect themselves and their loved ones,” but favors enhancing school security, mental health services, and police enforcement.
The organization has historically used its influence with millions of gun-owning voters to thwart gun control efforts in Congress.
