- Murphy said the current arms reform talks do not include a ban on assault weapons or expanded inspections.
- Negotiations came as the nation continued to fight the aftermath of the mass shootings in Buffalo and Uwalde.
- “We’re not going to do everything I want,” the Connecticut lawmaker said of a potential Senate bill.
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Senator Chris Murphy – who has played an important role in drafting a bipartisan arms reform bill following the deadly mass shootings in Buffalo and Uwalde, Texas – said potential legislation stemming from the current talks would not include a ban on assault weapons. history checks.
Murphy, in an interview with CNN’s State of the Union, told host Jake Tapper that a bipartisan contingent of senators met on Saturday as the group considered increasing funding for mental health, additional safety measures for schools and “modest” provisions for arms control as part of a package that can pass through the upper chamber.
“We’re not going to do everything I want,” the Connecticut Democrat said of a potential Senate bill.
He added: “We will not put on the table legislation that will ban weapons of attack, or we will not pass detailed inspections. But right now, the people of this country want us to make progress. They just don’t want the status quo to continue for another 30 years. “
At the moment, bipartisan reform may involve closer scrutiny of the past – a provision that does not go as far as many proponents of gun control would prefer – but would be a kind of compromise that could help a potential bill to overcome the legislative filibuster.
Murphy called the talks one of the most fruitful he has witnessed since joining the Senate in 2013.
“I have never been part of such serious negotiations as these,” he said. “There are more Republicans on the table who are talking about changing our gun laws and investing in mental health than ever after Sandy Hook.”
However, understanding the political reality of the evenly divided Senate, Murphy said discussions could potentially fall apart.
“I have also been part of many failed negotiations in the past, so I am sober about our chances,” he said. “I’m more confident than ever that we’ll get there, but I’m also more worried about failure this time.”
The senator, who as a member of the House of Representatives in 2012 represented Newtown – the site of the deadly mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School, where 20 children and six adults were killed by a 20-year-old shooter – has become one of the most famous defenders of arms control in the Senate.
Last year, after a mass shooting at Oxford High School on the outskirts of Detroit, Murphy advocated some kind of gun reform, even saying he would be “content” with legislation that was much narrower in scope than he wanted. .
Immediately after the shooting of Uwalde last month, Murphy again called on his colleagues to work with him on weapons reform measures and complained about past inaction.
“What are we doing? What are we doing? Just days after a shooter entered a grocery store to kill African-American visitors, we have another Sandy Hook in our hands,” he said in a Senate speech.
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