President Biden told reporters Monday that “rational Republicans” could act on gun control following the recent mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas.
Leading the news: “I think things have gone so badly that everyone is becoming more rational about it,” Biden said. “At least that’s my hope.”
Background: Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell told CNN Thursday that he met with Texas Sen. John Cornyn and encouraged him to talk to Democrats to find a compromise on legislation in response to the shooting. Texas.
- Biden said Monday he would welcome congressional arms control of Congress. Specifically, he called McConnell “a rational Republican” and that Cornyn can be too, and there is a “recognition on his part that they can’t go on like this.”
Yes, but Biden said he has not yet spoken to Republicans to find a compromise on gun control, “but I guess … they’ll have to take a good look at it.”
- “I know I have a responsibility. I can do the things I have done,” he said, but noted that the constitution only gives Congress the power to change laws. “I can’t ban a gun. I can’t change background checks.”
Overview: Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) Told ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday that there are “many more Republicans willing to talk” about gun control legislation than I’ve seen before. , reports Axios Ivana Saric.
- “Every time after one of these mass shootings, there are talks in Washington and they never succeed,” Murphy said. “But there are more Republicans interested in talking about finding a way forward this time than I’ve ever seen” since the 2012 shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School.