Posted on 02/23/2011 7:52:29 PM PST by neverdem
In the wake of last month's deadly shooting in Arizona, Senator Charles Schumer and Mayor Bloomberg are throwing their support behind new gun control legislation whose passage in Washington is far from assured. NY1's Grace Rauh filed the following report.
The numbers are bleak: every day 34 people in America are killed by guns. But Senator Charles Schumer and Mayor Michael Bloomberg hope to improve that staggering statistic with the passage of legislation they say is designed to prevent the next mass shooting.
"Americans want their government to take basic, common sense steps to keep guns out of the hands of dangerous people," Bloomberg told reporters Wednesday.
The legislation that Schumer is introducing in Washington would impose tougher penalties on states that fail to report drug abusers, people with mental illnesses, and individuals with domestic violence records to the national do-not-sell list.
It would also require background checks for all gun buyers. Right now, they aren't mandatory for people purchasing guns at a gun show.
"Those who cannot responsibly own a gun shouldn't have access to a gun, it's that simple. We're not trying to expand the law of who should and should not have it. We're just trying to enforce the law that exists on the books," Schumer said.
Gun control advocates are using the example of the alleged gunman in last month's deadly shooting in Tuscon, Arizona to help make their case.
Jared Loughner was able to buy a gun despite the fact that he was rejected from the U.S. Army over his drug use. Officials at Loughner's college also raised concerns about his mental health.
"Americans understand that criminals, drug abusers and the mentally ill should simply not be able to get a gun," Schumer said.
Senator Schumer may have support for his legislation in New York City, but whether he'll be successful at winning over Congress is another question.
"Passing gun legislation, even modest legislation like this, is hard," said the senator.
The National Rifle Association wields tremendous power in Washington. Schumer also noted that gun enthusiasts are often more vocal than supporters of gun control.
The NRA did not respond to NY1's requests for comment on the proposed legislation.
Its unnecessary - its a proposal to fix an issue that doesn’t exist. How many Jared Loughners have we seen shoot up since January.
Chuck Schumer is an idiot.
LLS
Btw, those people are already prohibited from buying and owning a gun. What we don’t need is Washington telling us we can’t defend ourselves.
Chuck had better keep his grubby paws off our guns!
The numbers are bleak: every day 34 people in America are killed by guns.
How many killed by autos?
Statisticly this figure is of no consequence.
More political smoke screen. Hide from the budget mess and the Middle East melt down.
Hey Chuckie and Mikey, don’t touch my junk!!!
When will THEY give up their ARMED security?
Most of those killed are criminals killed in self-defense. The rest are criminals killing criminals.
So do we really need another law on top of the 30,000 already on the books to address a statistic that probably won’t come down even if the law was changed?
Of course not and more gun control laws don’t prevent crime.
How many of the people are just bystanders walking to work or mowing their grass? My feeling is that if you looked closely you would see gang bangers, drug smugglers and cops shooting criminals as the majority of those deaths.
And what is so bleak about 12K people dying of gun related deaths a year when there are 350+ Million of us. What minute percentage of people is that?
About 52 million people die every year or 142 thousand a day worldwide.
Chuck U should be asking why AZ Sheriff Dipstick didn’t do his job. As for Mayor Bloomers, anything beyond regulating salt and smoking is above his mental ability.
Bloomberg has no right to tell me I can’t carry to defend myself and my family. Its none of his f*ckin’ business if I do!
Where is old Doopnuts these days? He sorta fell off the radar didn’t he? Prolly got a gig on CNN, I wouldn’t know since I don’t watch.
So the natural response is to restrict the 2A rights of law abiding citizens.
Schumer and Bloomberg, both Jews, should know better. 75 years ago, gun control laws were used to prevent Jews from defending themselves, because Jews were deemed dangerous people. Bloomberg wants to go way beyond preventing only certified nut cases from owning guns.
It’s silly even paying attention to these guys. There is NO WAY IN HELL the Republicans in the House are going to pass ANYTHING further restricting guns. Pelosi had a huge majority of Dems in the House and the only thing that she was able to pass was a bill ALLOWING concealed carry in National Park (consistent with that state’s laws). She worked with the NRA to get it right.
We conservatives have a lot more to do than worry about any restrictive gun legislation at the federal level EVER passing in this Congress.
I agree...but I've always been interested in the point of view of the other side. When they say there were 34 murders by gun in the lkast week in neighborhood "X", why does no one ever ask the question "how many of the shooters carried gun permits. They say, we must prevent unqualified people from obtaining firearms, as if liscensing restrictions would do anything at all to alleviate the situation. If the state issues drivers licenses, it does not prevent those who flaunt the law from driving....that is so plain to see that I can't believe that anyone would be so naive as to think any different.
I doubt it. She got her majority in part by recruiting Second Amendment friendly candidates in 2006 & 2008. She had bigger fish to fry, e.g. Obamacare, Cap & Tax, etc. The lefty true believers hated working with the "Blue Dogs."
They won't be a majority in the House until they can retake most of what seats that they lost in 2010, plus their upcoming losses from reapportionment and redistricting, maybe another 15 - 20 seats swing to the GOP. They lost about half of the "Blue Dogs," about 27 of the 50 or so, IIRC.
“I doubt it. She got her majority in part by recruiting Second Amendment friendly candidates in 2006 & 2008. “
Actually, I think she did work with NRA, or at least the key people did. Regardless - you are totally right as far as her strategy...and it was clear at the time too. The only way Dems from the South (other than cities) were going to get elected, was by supporting candidates that had legitimate conservative credentials at the local level, which she did.
However, once those local Southern conservative Democrats got to DC, they started receiving body parts in the mail (from their relatives) and they knew that they better vote with Pelosi if they wanted to see their loved ones again (in this world)...and I only exaggerate slightly here.
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