U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) has reintroduced legislation to expand background checks for gun purchases.
The bill would force unlicensed and private gun sellers to conduct a background check prior to transferring the weapon. That’s already the case in Connecticut, but not at the federal level.
Murphy has introduced the legislation every year since 2017.
He said it's “common sense” that a person who can’t pass a background check shouldn't be able to buy a gun.
“Nearly 90 percent of Americans – including the overwhelming majority of gun owners – support universal background checks,” Murphy said. “It’s just common sense that somebody who can’t pass a background check shouldn’t be able to buy a deadly firearm. As Trump endangers lives by getting rid of successful, bipartisan programs that brought down gun violence rates, we’re working to keep guns away from violent criminals and make communities safer.”
The legislation is co-sponsored by 45 senators, all of them Democrats. U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) is one of them.
“Our commonsense legislation to expand background checks for all gun sales will spare countless communities from the terror, tragedy, and trauma of gun violence,” Blumenthal said. “A national standard for comprehensive background checks is long overdue.”
Democrats also introduced similar legislation in the House of Representatives.
It faces an uphill battle in the Republican-controlled Congress. It would need GOP support — and a signature from President Donald Trump (R) — to become law.
Murphy, who has been a staunch supporter of gun control since the 2012 shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School, was instrumental in passing the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act in 2022.
That law enhanced background checks for people younger than 21, funded community intervention programs, and closed the “boyfriend loophole.”
