Democratic leaders are pushing the Senate majority leader to take action on gun control legislation. “Enough is enough,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said.
In the wake of yet another deadly mass shooting, Democratic leaders have urged Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) to do something about the “gun violence epidemic” in the United States by taking up legislation that would expand federal background checks on gun purchases.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) pressed McConnell on Saturday to take action on H.R. 8, also known as the Bipartisan Background Checks Act of 2019. The bill — which seeks to close loopholes allowing private or online sales of guns and sales at gun shows without background checks — was passed by the Democratic-controlled House in February.
McConnell has faced mounting pressure from Democratic lawmakers and others to bring the legislation to the Senate floor, but he has yet to do so.
The majority leader “should bring up H.R. 8 the week Congress returns,” Schumer said in a Saturday night tweet, hours after a gunman went on a shooting rampage in West Texas, killing multiple people and injuring at least 21. Three officers were among those who were injured, police said. A 17-month-old baby was also wounded in the attack.
