Manchin, who attended the meeting, co-sponsored a bill with Sen. Pat Toomey to express support for his proposal on background checks for gun purchases. Joe Manchin of West Virginia wrote bipartisan legislation on the subject and Trump appears to consider it the main bill Congress should build on. Chris Murphy, a Democrat from CT, that would improve reporting to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System.
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President Donald Trump may be walking back his push for gun reform.
Trump is “interested in improving” the background check system, but does not necessarily support universal checks favored by Democrats as he indicated during a sitdown with lawmakers earlier in the week. The same bill failed twice following the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in 2012. While he praised the organization as “true patriots” Wednesday, he repeatedly took positions that put him at odds with both the NRA and Republican Congressional leaders, such as advocating for raising the minimum age to buy assault weapons. “I think that would be a big mistake”, said Republican Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn on Tuesday. “They saw everything. To go to court would have taken a long time, so you could do exactly what you’re saying, but take the guns first, go through due process second”. He said Trump now must follow through.
On Wednesday, as students at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School returned to class, Mr Trump met a group of 17 representatives and senators at the White House.
During Wednesday’s White House meeting, the president stunned Republicans and Democrats alike by seeming to favor gun control measures that have always been anathema to gun rights advocates and his Red State base.
“The way I do my job I make myself aware of what happened today what everybody is talking about and then I try to make some sense of it for you”, Stephen Colbert said at the end of a topsy-turvy day.
The president said Republicans should listen to the Democrats. “But that’s something he would support”, she said.
Instead, he suggested that Republicans should focus on the background check bill, then load it up with other gun-control and safety measures.
In his White House meeting in February, Trump said he has heard from “more and more people” that “the level of violence in video games is really shaping young people’s thoughts”.
He also endorsed raising the age to 21 for buying all guns, a restriction that now applies only to handguns.
Democratic Senator Chris Murphy of CT, where the 2012 Sandy Hook massacre occurred, agreed with the president. “Respect 2nd Amendment!” he tweeted.
Cornyn, who sat next to Trump for the meeting, described it as “surreal”.
Trump plans another school safety meeting on Thursday. “Great patriots. They love our country but that doesn’t mean we have to agree on everything”, Trump added.
Giving hope to Democrats, he said he favored a “comprehensive” approach to addressing gun violence. The bill would offer money for law enforcement and school staff training, campus infrastructure upgrades and mental health resources.
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Following the school massacre in Florida, Donald Trump says he is looking to strengthen gun laws in the United States.
