Post by: netcoyote on March 25, 2013, 11:35:38 AM
McCain emerges as key senator in expanding background checks
By Alexander Bolton - 03/24/13 03:00 PM ET
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) has emerged as a key player if Senate Democrats are to have any chance of passing legislation to expand background checks for private sales of firearms.
McCain and Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Dean Heller (R-Nev.) are at the top of a list of Republicans considered most likely to sign on to legislation expanding background checks after talks with Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) stalled earlier this month.
Sen. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) has signaled he will likely support the yet-to-be-finalized proposal he negotiated with Sens. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) to expand background checks to cover private gun sales, according to Senate sources.
The proposal includes modifications to attract Republican support. One would let rural gun owners conduct background checks from their home computers. Another would create an appeals process for military veterans who have been declared mentally unfit to own a gun.
Expanding background checks is the centerpiece of President Obama’s proposal to change the nation’s gun laws in response to the mass shooting that killed 20 children in Newtown, Conn., last December.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has announced he will include background-check legislation in a firearms package scheduled for the Senate floor in April, even though it’s uncertain whether it could attract the 60 votes needed to overcome a filibuster.
McCain could provide crucial Republican support because he has a "B-plus" rating from the National Rifle Association, one of the most powerful interest groups in Washington. His endorsement could bring along Heller, who has an "A" rating from the NRA.
Collins and Kirk have weaker credentials on gun issues within Republican circles. Collins has a "C-plus" rating from the NRA and Kirk has an "F."
Manchin, who has an "A" rating from the NRA, has taken the lead in shopping the background-check proposal to Republican lawmakers, said a Senate aide.
Manchin said he is shopping the proposal widely but declined Friday to reveal his lobbying list.
“Anybody and every one of them. I’m talking to everybody,” he said when asked to identify targeted Republican senators.
McCain said he has discussed extended background checks but declined to reveal any details from those talks.
“We’ve had discussions about the issue,” McCain said. “I never describe my discussions with other senators.”
Read more: http://thehill.com/homenews/senate/289971-mccain-emerges-as-key-republican-in-expanding-background-checks-#ixzz2OZrskrky (http://thehill.com/homenews/senate/289971-mccain-emerges-as-key-republican-in-expanding-background-checks-#ixzz2OZrskrky)
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Post by: csaaphill on March 26, 2013, 03:01:13 AM