WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump was convening a bipartisan group of lawmakers Wednesday to discuss school safety, as Republican leaders showed little interest in pursuing stricter gun control laws and Democrats pushed new restrictions following the Florida shooting. U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., is among attendees.
Ahead of the session, Senate Democrats urged the president to follow through on his call for “comprehensive background checks” by endorsing legislation to extend the pre-purchase reviews to online and gun show sales.
“You said that you would be ‘strongly pushing comprehensive background checks’ in an effort to combat the epidemic of mass shootings that has plagued our country,” wrote the four senators led by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., citing Trump’s weekend tweet after the Florida high school shooting. “We couldn’t agree more.”
Legislation has been revived in the Senate to close the gun show and online sales loophole. Democrats appealed to Trump to use his influence on Capitol Hill, saying that if he endorses a background check bill it would have a better chance at passage.
“With your leadership, Mr. President, we have an opportunity to break through the gridlock that has held this issue hostage for so many years and finally enact the kind of commonsense gun safety legislation that over 90 percent of Americans, both Democrats and Republicans, support,” the senators wrote.