Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell told CNN he had ordered Texas Sen. John Cornyn to hold talks with Democratic senators to find a bipartisan solution to guns after a mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas, stopped 21 dead.
Cornyn went to Uvalde after the shooting, and McConnell ordered him to start working with Democratic senators, including Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, who enjoys a strong relationship with Republicans. and Chris Murphy of Connecticut, who has become the leading voice among Democrats over gun regulations following the shooting of Sandy Hook in his home state a decade ago.
“. As you know, he went home yesterday to see family members and start researching the facts of this horrible massacre and I encouraged him to talk to Sen Murphy and Sen Sinema and others who are interested in trying to get a result that is directly related to the problem. I hope we can find a bipartisan solution, “McConnell told CNN.
But the Kentucky Republican did not give a specific outline of which proposals he would consider acceptable and which he would veto.
McConnell’s words come after Senate Republicans blocked legislation to combat domestic terrorism that would have allowed the debate on legislation to curb armed violence to begin. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said Wednesday that the Senate would consider amendments to broader national terrorism legislation.
The House of Representatives passed the Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act last week in response to the deadly shooting in Buffalo, New York, in which an 18-year-old Payton Gendron opened fire and killed 10 people and injured three. with 11 of the 13 victims. Black.
But only one Republican in the House, Representative Adam Kinzinger of Illinois, voted in favor of the legislation and 203 Republicans voted against it. All House Democrats supported it.
Then this week, Salvador Ramos, another 18-year-old, opened fire on Robb Elementary in the city of Uvalde, Texas, killing 19 children and two adults. In response, Schumer said the Senate would consider amendments to the legislation.
But not passing domestic terrorism legislation does not mean there will be no action. Several groups of senators are discussing legislation to combat gun legislation.
Senator Chris Murphy is currently negotiating with several Republican senators to reach a bipartisan consensus, as the Senate would require 60 votes to avoid Republican obstructionism. West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin has repeatedly said he would not support a change to the filibuster.