On Thursday, lawmakers will decide whether the rare bipartisan effort in the United States Senate to agree on legislation to confront a string of mass shootings has enough momentum to succeed.
A group of lawmakers led by Democratic Senator Chris Murphy and Republican Senator John Cornyn is attempting to reach an agreement on a plan to improve school security, address gaps in the US mental health system, and keep guns out of the hands of criminals and others deemed a threat to the public and themselves.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and his Republican counterpart, Mitch McConnell, both expressed optimism that a deal might be reached by the end of the week.
There was a potential, according to negotiators and aides, of achieving an agreement in principle. In the absence of that, lawmakers would have a better idea of the extent of future conversations before leaving Washington for the weekend on Thursday.
‘We’ll have a much better sense tomorrow morning,’ Cornyn told reporters after a closed-door meeting on proposed legislation on Wednesday. ‘We’ll be able to tell if we still have momentum, which I feel we have at the moment.’
Murphy told reporters that his goal was to enact legislation to reduce the number of people killed in shootings in the United States before the Senate adjourned for the Fourth of July holiday at the end of the month. “We need to get moving as soon as possible. But this is a major, historic event, and we must get it properly. That is my primary concern “said the Democrat from Connecticut.
The operation comes in the wake of mass shootings in Buffalo, New York, Uvalde, Texas, Tulsa, Oklahoma, and other cities.
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