An assault weapons ban could pass Congress right now, according to Democratic Congressman Ted Deutch, who represents Parkland, Fla.
Rep. Deutch plans to introduce legislation later this week and says both sides of the aisle seem to agree that “this is the moment we need to get these weapons of war off the streets.”
“I don’t know how many votes there are,” says Deutch. “But I do know that...there are lots of Republicans and Democrats that I know for whom this is now the single issue that matters to them.”
That includes some Republicans who have never supported an assault weapons ban before, he tells Cheddar.
This rare moment of bipartisanship appears to be a direct consequence of the national #NeverAgain movement, led by the teenage survivors of the school shooting in Parkland, Fla., who have been pushing for new gun control measures.
An assault weapons ban doesn’t necessarily contradict the Second Amendment, according to Deutch, which increases its likelihood of passing.
“We know that the Second Amendment has limitations: you can’t own a machine gun, you can’t own a bazooka, you can’t own a tank,” he says.
However, research from the Department of Justice doesn’t indicate that an assault weapons ban would make a difference to gun crime rates. If a ban like the one implemented from 1994 to 2004 was put back into place, the results on gun violence are likely to be “small at best,” says the report.
The teenage survivors of Parkland have organized marches for gun control across the country on March 24.
For the full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/rep-ted-deutch-d-fl-calls-proposal-to-arm-teachers-a-distraction).
Speaker Kevin McCarthy said Tuesday he is directing a House committee to open an impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden over his family's business dealings, launching historic proceedings ahead of the 2024 election.
The Biden administration issued a waiver to allow banks to transfer $6 billion in frozen Iranian oil funds without facing U.S. sanctions, a key step in a prisoner swap deal.
Attorneys for former President Donald Trump requested that the judge presiding over the federal case involving attempts to overturn the 2020 election be reassigned.
With Congress back from summer recess, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has a slew of issues to resolve ahead of this month's spending deadline.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has arrived in Russia and is set to meet with Vladimir Putin.
The U.S. approved updated COVID-19 vaccines Monday, hoping to rev up protection against the latest coronavirus strains and blunt any surge this fall and winter.
The Biden administration has cleared the way for the release of five American citizens detained in Iran by issuing a blanket waiver for international banks to transfer $6 billion in frozen Iranian money from South Korea to Qatar without fear of U.S. sanctions. In addition, as part of the deal, the administration has agreed to release five Iranian citizens held in the United States.
The U.S. government is taking aim at what has been an indomitable empire: Google’s ubiquitous search engine that has become the internet’s main gateway.
President Joe Biden met with Vietnamese President Vo Van Thuong in Hanoi following his trip in India for the G20 summit.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is headed to Russia to meet with President Vladimir Putin.
Load More