"The Senate Judiciary Committee could begin considering gun
control bills as soon as Thursday, including a measure that would
ban military-style assault weapons. Other pieces of legislation that
will be considered by the panel are measures stopping illegal
trafficking of guns, bolstering background checks on gun sales, and
improving security in schools."
(CNN) – The Senate Judiciary
Committee could begin considering gun control bills as soon as
Thursday, including a measure that would ban military-style assault
weapons.
Other pieces of legislation that will be considered by the panel
are measures stopping illegal trafficking of guns, bolstering
background checks on gun sales, and improving security in schools.
Republicans could force a postponement of the Senate panel's mark up
of gun legislation for one week.
Of the proposed bills, background checks are considered the most
likely to gain Congressional approval. The assault weapons ban,
which was introduced by Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein of
California, is opposed by Republicans and some pro-gun Democrats.
President Barack Obama pressed Congress to pass tighter
restrictions on guns in the aftermath of December's deadly shooting
at an elementary school in Connecticut. The four bills up for
consideration by the Senate Judiciary Committee have all been
supported by the president.
On Sunday, Republican Sen. Tom Coburn of Oklahoma, who is among a
bipartisan group of four senators working behind the scenes on a
bill to expand background checks, said a sticking point had emerged
on whether to keep records on gun owners.
"I don't think we're that close to a deal," the Oklahoma
Republican said on "Fox News Sunday." "There absolutely will not be
record-keeping on legitimate, law-abiding gun owners in this
country. If they want to eliminate the benefits of actually trying
to prevent the sales to people who are mentally ill and to
criminals, all they have to do is to create a record-keeping. That
will kill this bill."
Coburn, who maintains an A rating with the National Rifle
Association, is joined in his group by Sen. Mark Kirk, R-Illinois;
Sen. Joe Manchin, D-West Virginia, a longtime advocate of gun
rights; and Chuck Schumer, D-New York, a longtime supporter of gun
control.
The chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Sen. Patrick
Leahy of Vermont, was adamant Sunday that expanded background checks
would not include provisions to register gun owners, but he said
that responsible Americans looking to purchase firearms shouldn't
fear robust checks.
"They check to see if you told the truth, and then it's cleared
out," Leahy said of the current background check system, adding
later that measures to register gun owners would not be part of
Senate gun control legislation.
"It's not going to be registration," he said on CNN's "State of
the Union," adding that Republicans and gun advocates need to "lower
the rhetoric and talk reality."