Gun control has become a popular, controversial term, especially in America that covers a broad range of obligations regarding firearms. In particular, gun control in the U.S is about who can sell or possess guns, what duties gun sellers have in vetting buyers, how and where guns can be stored, what obligations gun sellers and buyers have in reporting firearms transactions to the government, and the restrictions that surround what kind of guns to be bought and sold. The United States Federal law prohibits certain groups of people including drug addicts, mentally ill, illegal immigrants, those with restraining orders, among others from owning firearms. The Federal law also requires licensed gun dealers to conduct background checks on individuals, using an F.B.I database, to determine if buyers are among those barred from owning guns (McGinty 3). The Democrats, the Republicans, and the conservative Republicans have tangled over upholding individuals’ rights to own guns and the details of proposed legislation that seeks to prevent terrorists from buying firearms.
The Debate and the Influential People Involved
The leaders of the Republican-controlled House of Representative chose to vote for a measure aimed at preventing terrorists from purchasing guns in the United States. A Republican Congressman also clarified that their proposed legislation was to obligate the Department of Justice to prove that there is a ‘probable cause’ that an individual is involved in terrorist activities before barring a particular gun sale (McNamee par.1). According to the proposal, the background check by the Justice Department before a gun transaction was to take an approximated period of three days. The proposed legislation by the Republican leaders was countered by the conservative Republican who claimed that the fate of the legislation was in doubt because it was bound to infringe the rights of the American people to buy guns (McNamee par.1).
On the other hand, the House of Democrats claimed that the Republican proposal was ‘too limited’ and demanded more thorough gun control legislations to be passed following the atrocities perpetrated by the uncontrolled gun ownership; like the Orlando mass shooting (Miller par. 1). The Democrats even staged a sit-in on the floor of the United States House of Representatives when advocating for the proposal to prevent any individual on the United States no-fly list from purchasing a firearm (Cornwell par. 1). Notably, whereas the U.S House Speaker challenged the Democrats’ proposal because he believed that it was bound to interfere with the American citizen’s constitutional rights to own guns, the House Minority Leader rallied for more new restrictions on gun sales, describing the Republican proposed measure as ‘toothless.’ According to the United States House Minority Leader as of 2016, the Republican gun control measure was not sufficient to keep the American community safe.
Conclusion
The media coverage on the gun control issue in the recent months has augmented political tension, especially in the just concluded the United States presidential elections. The heated debates in the Congress about gun control legislation depict a clear two-sided perspective regarding the gun control controversy in America. In that case, the issue revolving around upholding the American people’s constitutional rights to own guns and the passage of legislative measures that are bound to infringe on the individuals’ rights still leave the Democratic and the Republican lawmakers as divided as ever.
Works Cited
Cornwell, Susan. “US House Democrats Stage Sit-In over Gun Control Legislation.” The wire, 2016, Web.
McGinty, Emma. “Common Sense or Gun Control? Political Communication and News Media Framing of Firearm Sale Background Checks after Newtown.” Journal of health politics, policy and law, vol. 41, no. 1, 2016, pp. 3-40.
McNamee, Win. “The FBI Checked the Wrong Box and a Woman Ended Up on the Terrorism Watch List for Years.” ProPublica, 2015, Web.
Miller, Devin. “Despite Partisan Roadblocks, Pediatricians Resolve to Protect Children from Gun Violence.” AAP News, 2016.