After the tragic death of 17 students during a mass shooting at a high school in Parkland, Florida yesterday, Democratic Congress members are once again calling for a more comprehensive gun control.
The debate over gun reform remains divided as Democrats tout their gun control agenda while top Republicans emphasize the need for stronger mental health support.
President Trump, Attorney General Jeff Sessions, and Speaker of the House Paul Ryan didn't mention gun reform in the statements they made today about the shooting. “This is one of those moments where we just need to step back and count our blessings. We need to think less about taking sides and fighting each other politically and just pulling together,” Ryan said during a press conference earlier today.
Democrats, including Rep. Michael Capuano (D-Mass), have pointed to yesterday's shooting, as another in the long line of horrific examples that show the United States needs gun reform.
“People can disagree on what we should do, but to do nothing, to try nothing, is to me, unconscionable and irresponsible,” Capuano said during an interview with Boston Public Radio Thursday.
“There is no proposal that I’m aware of that would take guns away from anybody who would be legally entitled to do it," Capuano added. "All the proposals that we have are to make sure that people again who are certified as having mental health problems are not able to get a gun. That people that have a felony conviction are not able to have a gun. That all guns that are sold are subject to a background check. I don’t think that’s a real high hurdle for 95 percent of America. It’s the extremes that we are trying to get at.”
Capuano sees this as a simple issue that should pass without controversy, yet it's difficult to get legislation to move through the floor of the House. The only way gun reform will pass, said Capuano, is with the help of Republicans.
“The idea is to try to get something moved, and the only way to get that done is to get a handful of Republicans to agree with us to get a bill on the floor, and that is really something that needs to be done in the districts of the people that can be moved — especially the Republicans who are leaving office who are not seeking to be reelected [and] therefore don’t care what the NRA says,” Capuano said
“That’s where our focus should be. All the rest is theater.”
