Senators seek deal on gun-sale background checks

[Eugene]

Source: Associated Press

Senators seek deal on gun-sale background checks

Published: February 8, 2013 Updated 5 hours ago

By ALAN FRAM — Associated Press

WASHINGTON — A bipartisan quartet of senators, including two National Rifle Association members and two with "F" ratings from the potent firearms lobby, are quietly trying to find a compromise on expanding the requirement for gun-sale background checks.

A deal, given a good chance by several participants and lobbyists, could add formidable political momentum to one of the key elements of President Barack Obama's gun control plan. Currently, background checks are required only for sales by the nation's 55,000 federally licensed gun dealers, but not for gun show, person-to-person sales or other private transactions.

The senators' talks have included discussions about ways to encourage states to make more mental health records available to the national system and the types of transactions that might be exempted from background checks, such as sales among relatives or to those who have permits to carry concealed weapons, said people who spoke anonymously because they were not authorized to describe the negotiations publicly.

The private discussions involve liberal Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York, who is the No. 3 Senate Democratic leader; West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin, an NRA member and one of the chamber's more moderate Democrats; Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., another NRA member and one of the more conservative lawmakers in Congress; and moderate GOP Sen. Mark Kirk of Illinois.

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Read more: http://www.idahostatesman.com/2013/02/08/2443700/senators-seek-deal-on-gun-sale.html

[pipoman]

1. Not sure if the writer

is simply ignorant or lying..NICS checks are absolutely required to be done by firearms dealers at gun shows just like every other venue a firearms dealer may find themselves..the ONLY sales which do not currently require a background check are sales between two people who reside in the same state who are not engaged in the business of selling firearms...private individuals selling their own private property. Gun shows have not a single thing to do with who is or isn't required.

That said, the impediment for requiring background checks on private sales as described, has previously been the limitation of the federal government to regulate intrastate commerce. It will be interesting to see how this significant hurtle will be approached this time around. I predict a voluntary system with possible incentives to states which enact legislation requiring the checks...and not a federal law requiring them at all..