Summary: After the deadly shooting at a Florida high school last week, the issue of gun control has been put back at the top.
Nearly a week after the deadly school shooting in Parkland, Florida, the Florida House of Representatives focused the Tuesday session on topics other than guns. The shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School left 17 people dead from gunshot wounds, resulting in many crying for tighter controls on guns.
The gun-control bill that the House turned down was to ban the sale of assault weapons. According to The Washington Post, the House instead focused on pornography as a risk to public health.
The session Tuesday started with state Rep. Kionne McGhee asking for a procedural change which would allow the House to hear arguments for the banning of assault weapons. The bill had been assigned to three committees but was not yet scheduled for a hearing. McGhee said, “I ask that you keep this bill and the conversation about the solution to combat mass shootings alive. The shooting at Parkland demands extraordinary action.”
The House responded to her demand with a vote of 71 to 36 turning down the motion. They are choosing to focus on things that can cause the degradation of society such as pornography. State Rep. Ross Spano addressed the issue, stating that porn leads to “mental and physical illnesses” in addition to “deviant, or problematic sexual behaviors.” There is evidence suggesting that pornography is mentally damaging and other states have pointed to it as a problem.
President Donald Trump held a discussion, inviting survivors of the Parkland shooting and other recent school shootings, to the White House. He asked for solutions and feedback on how to tackle the issue of guns and schools. According to the U.S. News, some of the ideas being tossed around include raising the minimum age to buy assault weapons to 21, allowing some school employees to be trained to conceal carry, improving background checks, and improving mental health access.
Trump apparently discussed the age requirement during a dinner with TV personality Geraldo Rivera this past weekend. Sen. Dianne Feinstein and Sen. Jeff Flake are working on a bill that would raise the minimum age required to buy rifles from gun dealers. Flake tweeted, “A kid too young to buy a handgun should be too young to buy an #AR15.” Currently, someone buying a handgun from a licensed gun dealer must be 21.
There is a bipartisan bill that came about after the Texas church mass shooting that would touch on the background check issue. The bill proposes penalizing federal agencies that fail to properly report required records. The states that comply with requirements would be rewarded with federal grant preferences.
Do you think any changes to gun laws matter when they are bought and sold illegally on the black market anyway? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below.
To learn more about gun control issues, read these articles:
- Senate Rejects Four Gun Control Measures
- Democrats Stage Sit-In to Protest Lack of Gun Control
- Lawsuit Claims Katie Couric Created Misleading Gun Control Documentary
Photo: flickr.com