Politics

Democrats To Reintroduce Stricter Gun Legislation Ahead Of Parkland Shooting’s One-Year Anniversary

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Democratic Florida Rep. Ted Deutch and Democratic New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez plan to reintroduce a high-capacity gun magazine ban Tuesday to mark the one-year anniversary of the Parkland shooting Thursday.

The legislation, which would ban any magazine that exceeds 10 rounds of ammunition, has been dubbed the “Keep Americans Safe Act,” reported CNN. 2020 Democratic presidential hopefuls including Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota and Kamala Harris of California are cosponsors.

“The fact is that these high-capacity magazines allow someone to fire off more than 10 rounds in a row,” Deutch said according to CNN. “You don’t need that if you’re a hunter, you don’t need that for any purpose. You don’t need that for sporting purposes.”

Deutch’s district includes Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, where a gunman with an AR-15-style rifle killed 17 people on Feb. 14, 2018.

The legislation is unlikely to become law as it has no Republican cosponsors, according to CNN.

National Rifle Association (NRA) spokeswoman Jennifer Baker said of the bill:

This legislation would effectively ban the most commonly owned firearms for self-defense. It is an arbitrary limit pulled out of thin air with no evidence that the limits would improve public safety. In fact the after report from the deadliest school shooting in American history states that magazine limits would have had no impact. This is just more nonsense from anti-gun zealots who are looking to score political points by proposing legislation that would make criminals out of law-abiding citizens exercising their constitutional right to self-defense while doing nothing to deter criminals from committing crimes.

Menendez first introduced the Senate version of the legislation back in October 2017 and said he might hold up other legislation with a floor vote on the “Keep Americans Safe Act.”

“We’ve struck at the heart, I think, of some of the most reasonable gun safety measures that can be the beginning of moving us into a more sane process in the days ahead,” the Democrat told CNN Monday.

Menendez and Deutch’s announcement about reintroducing the legislation comes about a week after Congress held a gun violence hearing Wednesday where Parkland shooting survivor Aalayah Eastmond testified, reported the Sun-Sentinel.

Gun control groups including Michael Bloomberg’s Everytown for Gun Control and Giffords, started by former Democratic Arizona Rep. Gabby Giffords and her husband Mark Kelly, have endorsed the “Keep Americans Safe Act.”

Kelly, a former astronaut, announced he’s “launching” a campaign for U.S. Senate in Arizona with a video addressing climate change, corporate money in politics and more Tuesday.