Sen. Pat Toomey on Sunday said he intends to give his expanded background checks legislation “another shot” in the wake of a massacre at a Florida high school earlier this month.
The Pennsylvania Republican, who along with Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia proposed a bill to strengthen background checks after the 2012 Sandy Hook school shooting, said he intends to resurrect the legislation and that some lawmakers who previously opposed it may come around this time.
“Let’s at least require a background check for all commercial sales … I intend to give this another shot,” he told NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday morning.
But Mr. Toomey, one of a growing number of Republicans willing to publicly push legislation at odds with the politically powerful National Rifle Association, said he’s not been given assurances by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell that his bill will be given a vote on the Senate floor.
• Ben Wolfgang can be reached at bwolfgang@washingtontimes.com.
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