tangent4ronpaul
03-12-2013, 08:24 AM
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/13/us/politics/senate-panel-likely-to-vote-on-gun-measure.html?_r=0
WASHINGTON — The Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday will return to debating two contentious measures designed to curb gun violence, and will likely vote on one.
The committee approved a measure last week that would make the practice of illegally buying a gun for someone else — known as a straw purchase — a felony, and increase penalties for the crime. The vote was significant because it attracted the support of one Republican — Senator Charles E. Grassley of Iowa, the most senior Republican on the committee — signaling that the measure may well succeed in the full Senate later this spring.
Two other measures, varied in their approach, represent part of President Obama’s gun safety agenda, including the expansion of background checks on those who buy guns in private sales. The committee is also considering reauthorization of a program that provides matching grants for school safety improvements.
While the committee is poised to vote on the measures Tuesday, a visit by Mr. Obama to Capitol Hill to have lunch with Senate Democrats, may delay the process. It will be the first of three trips this week in which Mr. Obama will break bread with members from both parties in both chambers.
Shortly after the mass shooting in December in Newtown, Conn., which killed 20 children, there seemed to be momentum in the Senate for a universal background check bill, which law enforcement officials believe is a necessary tandem to enhanced penalties for straw purchases, because it would help identify more criminals and the mentally ill who seek to buy guns.
However, the bill’s main sponsor, Senator Charles E. Schumer, Democrat of New York, has had trouble finding a Republican strongly supportive of gun rights to join him and bring others along. He originally seemed to be joined by Senator Tom Coburn of Oklahoma, who peeled away over disagreements over record keeping in private sales; Mr. Schumer believes such records, already kept in gun store transactions, are needed to make the checks meaningful while Mr. Coburn fears they will lead to a gun registry.
Once the committee’s work is done, it will be up to Senator Harry Reid of Nevada, the majority leader, to decide which measures to bring to the floor of the Senate, setting up tough votes for many lawmakers who are torn between constituents who view even modest gun safety measures as an infringement on their Second Amendment rights, and those who would like to see Congress take some action. Should a straw purchase bill be the only final product, it would be a significant defeat for the Obama administration, and renewed demonstration of the sinewy power of the National Rifle Association.
-t
WASHINGTON — The Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday will return to debating two contentious measures designed to curb gun violence, and will likely vote on one.
The committee approved a measure last week that would make the practice of illegally buying a gun for someone else — known as a straw purchase — a felony, and increase penalties for the crime. The vote was significant because it attracted the support of one Republican — Senator Charles E. Grassley of Iowa, the most senior Republican on the committee — signaling that the measure may well succeed in the full Senate later this spring.
Two other measures, varied in their approach, represent part of President Obama’s gun safety agenda, including the expansion of background checks on those who buy guns in private sales. The committee is also considering reauthorization of a program that provides matching grants for school safety improvements.
While the committee is poised to vote on the measures Tuesday, a visit by Mr. Obama to Capitol Hill to have lunch with Senate Democrats, may delay the process. It will be the first of three trips this week in which Mr. Obama will break bread with members from both parties in both chambers.
Shortly after the mass shooting in December in Newtown, Conn., which killed 20 children, there seemed to be momentum in the Senate for a universal background check bill, which law enforcement officials believe is a necessary tandem to enhanced penalties for straw purchases, because it would help identify more criminals and the mentally ill who seek to buy guns.
However, the bill’s main sponsor, Senator Charles E. Schumer, Democrat of New York, has had trouble finding a Republican strongly supportive of gun rights to join him and bring others along. He originally seemed to be joined by Senator Tom Coburn of Oklahoma, who peeled away over disagreements over record keeping in private sales; Mr. Schumer believes such records, already kept in gun store transactions, are needed to make the checks meaningful while Mr. Coburn fears they will lead to a gun registry.
Once the committee’s work is done, it will be up to Senator Harry Reid of Nevada, the majority leader, to decide which measures to bring to the floor of the Senate, setting up tough votes for many lawmakers who are torn between constituents who view even modest gun safety measures as an infringement on their Second Amendment rights, and those who would like to see Congress take some action. Should a straw purchase bill be the only final product, it would be a significant defeat for the Obama administration, and renewed demonstration of the sinewy power of the National Rifle Association.
-t