Washington — Thursday’s failure to pass a bill to strengthen federal efforts to combat domestic terrorist acts was a setback for Democratic efforts to act in the wake of mass shootings at a Buffalo grocery store and Uvalde elementary school, Texas.
The Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act of 2020, also known as the bill, was defeated by 47 votes to 47. This margin is far below the threshold of 60 votes needed to defeat Republican opposition in the 50-50 Senate. Similar legislation was passed in the House but fell on the Senate floor in 2020.
New York’s Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer changed his vote to “no” as a procedural maneuver, which allows him to bring up the bill again in the future. To respond to the Buffalo shooting, he first set the vote for Thursday. On Thursday, he urged Republican members of Congress to support the bill in order to start a discussion on domestic terrorism as well as strengthening gun laws to prevent mass shootings in the future.
“Today is the day that we can start to discuss how to make these gunshots less likely.” There’s another benefit to moving forward today: it’s a chance for a larger discussion to consider amendments to gun safety legislation in general.
“I am aware that there are many views held by members of the other side that differ from those on this side. Let us therefore move forward with this bill. Let us proceed. He said that they could then bring them to the ground.”
The Democratic-led House passed the bill days after the Buffalo shooting in which a self-described white supremacist attacked a grocery store located in a predominantly Black neighborhood and murdered 10 people. The bill was approved by one House Republican, Rep. Adam Kinzinger from Illinois.
The legislation would require that the FBI, Justice Department, and Department of Homeland Security open offices to combat domestic terrorism and establish a task force to address white superiority in the U.S. army. These three agencies would be required to produce a report every six month on “the domestic terrorism risk posed by White supremacists and neo Nazis,” including White supremacist/neo Nazi infiltration of Federal, State and local law enforcement agencies, as well as the uniformed military.
Republican legislators argued that the legislation would have not prevented the attack on Buffalo and unfairly criticized police officers and military personnel.
“Today, we will be presented with a bill ostensibly entitled and ostensibly concerning domestic terrorism. This bill could be better called the Democrat’s plan to insult and label our soldiers and police as white supremacists or neo Nazis. “How insulting,” GOP Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky stated on the floor.
Dick Durbin, Democratic Senator from Illinois, was the majority whip. He stressed that the bill did not create new federal crimes or give new authority to federal law enforcement agents.
Durbin stated that they are asking federal agencies responsible for national security to provide timely reports on domestic terrorism incidents. It’s not an imagined crime. It’s a reality that we see all too often. It was just two weeks ago that we saw it in Buffalo, New York.
Texas shooting, where 19 students and 2 teachers were killed by gunman with an AR-15 rifle, has prompted renewed efforts by Democrats for further restrictions on guns. This goal was nearly impossible since Sandy Hook Elementary School, Newtown, Connecticut, was shot in 2012.
Schumer announced that Democratic Senator Chris Murphy, Connecticut’s staunch gun control advocate, had opened talks with Republican senators in order to find common ground on gun legislation. Schumer stated that the talks were not an invitation to continue negotiations indefinitely.
Schumer said that “if these negotiations fail to bear any fruit”, the Senate would vote on gun legislation when it returns from its Memorial Day recess.
Murphy stated to reporters at Capitol that the upcoming recess might help stimulate negotiations with GOP legislators. He also said it was “easier” to work these issues outside Washington than when they’re here.
He stated that “we need at least one week to work through these difficult issues,” and added that lawmakers were planning to meet on Thursday and next week in an effort to come up with a bipartisan proposal.
“Right now, we’re trying to find common ground among Republicans. That could also be found in the background space. Murphy stated that it could be in “the red flag space”, referring to recent laws in some states which allow courts to confiscate firearms from people deemed to pose a danger to themselves or others.
Reporting by Nikole Killion
