Negotiators on a Senate gun control bill could finish writing the text of the legislation later this week, Republican Senator John Cornyn said on Tuesday, adding that doing so could clear it for votes by the full Senate as early as next week.
Cornyn, the main Republican negotiator on a bipartisan bill that would expand gun sale background checks and support states that institute “red flag” laws, said “serious progress” was being made behind closed doors.
“I spoke with Senator (Chuck) Schumer this morning. He said he would like to have this bill ready to vote on next week and I’m certainly with him in terms of that aspirational goal,” Cornyn said, referring to the Senate majority leader who sets debates and votes on legislation.
Schumer repeatedly has said he would work quickly to pass the bill once it is written.
But thorny issues still need to be resolved.
Ten Republicans, nine Democrats and one independent have joined forces in the Senate on what Democrats are calling a “first step” towards tackling mass murders, such as the recent ones in New York and Texas. In those cases, semi-automatic weapons were used against Black people and elementary school children, respectively.
Approved ~ Primus Pilus