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The National Rifle Association slammed the Senate’s bill text for its bipartisan gun control package, saying it “falls short at every level.”.
“The NRA will support legislation that improves school security, promotes mental health services, and helps reduce violent crime. However, we will oppose this gun control legislation because it falls short at every level. It does little to truly address violent crime while opening the door to unnecessary burdens on the exercise of Second Amendment freedom by law-abiding gun owners,” the NRA said in a statement Tuesday.
The Senate released the 80-page text of the bill on Tuesday, which includes grants for states that implement their own red flag laws, would expand background checks for gun buyers under 21, creates penalties for straw purchases of firearms, requires more gun sellers to register as Federally Licensed Firearm Dealers.
The Senate voted to advance the bill at a 64 to 34 vote, with 14 Republicans supporting the effort. The procedural vote signals the bill would have enough support to pass the 60-vote threshold needed to break a filibuster in the Senate when it comes up for an official vote.
FILE – Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., left, and Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, right, talk to reporters following a closed-door policy meeting at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, March 8, 2016. AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)
(AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
The NRA continued in its statement that the legislation “can be abused to restrict lawful gun purchases, infringe upon the rights of law-abiding Americans.”
This legislation would “use federal dollars to fund gun control measures being adopted by state and local politicians. This bill leaves too much discretion in the hands of government officials and also contains undefined and overbroad provisions – inviting interference with our constitutional freedoms,” the NRA statement said.
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“Decisions by the Supreme Court of the United States in the Heller and McDonald cases make clear that the Second Amendment is an individual constitutional freedom. We will always fight for those freedoms – and the fundamental values we have defended for over 150 years,” the NRA concluded in its statement Tuesday.
People participate in the second March for Our Lives rally in support of gun control in front of the Washington Monument, Saturday, June 11, 2022, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
(AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
A group of senators, including Republican Sen. John Cornyn and Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy, announced this month that they had come to an agreement on a “commonsense, bipartisan proposal to protect America’s children, keep our schools safe, and reduce the threat of violence across our country.” The agreement followed a series of devastating mass shootings, including one at a school in Uvalde, Texas, that left 19 children and two adults dead.
The NRA issued a response to the tentative agreement, vowing its commitment “to real solutions to help stop violence in our communities,” but did not take a stance on the framework as leaders at the organization had not yet read the bill.
SENATE VOTES TO ADVANCE BIPARTISAN GUN CONTROL LEGISLATION
Signage outside the National Rifle Association (NRA) annual convention in Houston, Texas, US, on Friday, May 27, 2022. Photographer: Mark Felix/Bloomberg via Getty Images
(Mark Felix/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Though the bill garnered support from some Republicans in the procedural vote, other Republicans slammed the legislation.
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“I do not support this legislation and will continue to vote against it,” Senate Republican Conference Chair John Barrasso said. “As a senator from Wyoming, I know the meaning of the Second Amendment. I will not vote for any legislation that would jeopardize the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens.”
Fox News’ Landon Mion contributed to this report.