They deserve a vote! (And they’re one step closer to getting
one)
What happened this week in Congress…
In President Obama’s State
of the Union address on February 12th, he made the plea for a vote on
legislation to reduce gun violence, saying that the families and survivors of
gun violence “deserve a vote.” Yesterday, these families are one step closer in
reaching that vote, as the U.S. Senate approved a procedural motion to allow
debate on the gun legislation proposed. The vote to debate the bill passed
68-31.
What is the legislation they will be debating and hopefully
voting on in the weeks ahead?
The Public
Safety and Second Amendment Rights Protection Act is a compromise between
Democratic Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Republican Senator Pat
Toomey from Pennsylvania. It would expand background checks to include internet
sales and all gun shows, crack down on straw purchasers of guns and enhance
school security. However, the bill does not include background checks for gun
sales and transfers between friends and acquaintances, and explicitly bans any
sort of national firearms registry.
What happens now?
The Senate is now poised
for weeks of intense debate on the issue of gun violence and gun rights in
America, a deliberation not seen in Congress since the 1990’s. The
Hill, a congressional newspaper,reports that not all Democrats can be
counted on supporting the final bill and five Republican votes will be needed
to send the bill to the House. Currently, Democrats only seem to have
Republican Senators Toomey, the co-author of the bill, and Kirk set to support
the legislation. There will likely be several amendments presented to the bill,
and even a different bill entirely from Republican Senator Grassley. These
amendments would need 60 votes to pass.
The threaten of a filibuster earlier in the week
The 68-31 vote overcame
the attempted filibuster of the bill by several Republicans. Why Senators would
refuse to even vote against legislation they disagree with is ridiculous, and
according to Vice-President Biden, “embarrassing.” He wasn’t the only one
criticizing the Republicans for threatening filibuster action this week.
“What are you going to say to those parents? Look them in the eye and
tell them you concluded there’s nothing you can do?” he said. “We have an
obligation to try. We know if we do the things we’re talking about, we will
save lives.”
"The senators who have vowed to filibuster this bill should be
ashamed of their attempt to silence efforts to prevent the next American
tragedy…Their staunch opposition to sensible gun reform is an affront to the 26
innocent children and educators who were murdered in Newtown. No one should
have to experience the pain we have endured – commonsense gun laws will help
spare others from the grief we live with every day."
“I don’t understand [the filibuster]. The purpose of the United States Senate is to debate and to
vote and to let the people know where we stand.”
“The day Newtown happened was the toughest day of my
presidency. But I gotta tell you, if we don’t respond to this, that will be a
tough day for me too. Because, we’ve got to expect more from ourselves. We’ve
got to expect more from Congress. We’ve got to believe that every once in a
while, we set politics aside and we just do what’s right. We gotta believe
that.”
“There is simply no reason for this blatant obstruction…Now
when they encounter an issue that they’re afraid to debate in full public view
they want to thwart debate all together.”
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