Mech
Joined: 06 Jun 2001
Posts: 8237
Location: THE 4th REICH USA |
Senate passes 2nd Amendment violating gun laws..Bush expecte
 Tue Mar 02, 2004 7:26 pm
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Senate Narrowly Passes Assault Weapons Ban
43 minutes ago
March 2,2004
By Joanne Kenen
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - In a rare victory for gun control advocates, the Senate on Tuesday voted 52-47 to extend the 1994 ban on the sale of assault weapons, which had been set to expire in September.
Moments later the Senate, by a similar 53-46 vote, backed closing the so-called "gun show loophole," requiring people who buy firearms to undergo the same criminal background checks at gun shows as they would have to at a licensed gun store.
Both measures were amendments to a bill backed by the National Rifle Association gun lobby that would shield much of the gun industry from civil lawsuits. That bill is expected to pass easily later on Tuesday.
The White House has said President Bush would sign the extension of the assault weapons ban, although he has not made a public push for its passage and urged the Senate not to vote on it at this time.
The NRA opposes both the gun show and the assault weapons ban amendments, and they face an uphill struggle in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Both Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts and Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina interrupted their campaigns for the Democratic presidential nomination to return to the Senate to vote for the amendments, a politically sensitive issue in an election year. Many observers believe gun control votes have hurt Democrats at the polls.
Some Democrats and gun control advocates had wanted to try to strengthen the assault weapons ban, closing loopholes that gun-makers have found over the past decade. But these lawmakers said they realized extending the current ban would be enough of a struggle.
The ban was originally passed in 1994, during President Bill Clinton's administration.
Backers said it has gotten some of the most dangerous weapons off the streets, but foes regard it as an unnecessary regulation of law-abiding gun owners.
"It didn't work and it isn't necessary," said Idaho Republican Sen. Larry Craig, who has led the floor fight against gun control.
But New Jersey Democratic Sen. Frank Lautenberg said assault weapons are "intended to kill as many people as possible in as short a period of time" and don't belong on the street.
Despite his 2000 campaign statements that he would sign an extension of the ban, Bush urged the Senate not to attach the assault weapon ban to the lawsuit protection bill, saying he did not want controversial amendments to slow down passage of the immunity bill.
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WATCH GUN GRABBER, OPEN BORDER BUSH SIGN IT. BUSH |
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