The Pasadena Star News in California has an interesting editorial up about that deal made between Congressional Democrats and the NRA– supposedly, they agreed to close the mental health loophole by both supporting a law that required states to deliver their mental health information to the National Background Check System. Both the NRA and Democrats hailed the agreement as a landmark deal that would help us all. But as the editorial says, this deal may not quite be as landmark (or as helpful) as it seems.
It’s a harsh, political reality that few gun-control measures become law without a fight with the National Rifle Association. So forgive the natural suspicion that arises on the rare occasion the NRA agrees to tighten gun-violence safeguards.
That said, with the NRA’s acquiescence, the House last week passed legislation that should go a long way toward keeping weapons from the mentally ill. It was done in response to April’s Virginia Tech shooting, where a student was able to buy guns despite his well-known mental illness.
Passing the House bill was no small feat, and was accomplished only with the NRA’s endorsement.
We’re not opposed to this bill at all– states should already sent all the information they have to the background check system. The Democrats felt they needed the NRA’s approval to do this, and if that’s what it really took, then that’s what it took.
But with as many problems with gun violence as we have, frankly, the bill doesn’t go far enough. If we’re going to start making deals with the NRA, why not get something really important out of it? Closing this loophole is useless if we don’t close a loophole that’s needed closing for a lot longer– the gun show loophole.
Nor was it a foregone conclusion that Congress would move to reduce gun violence after Virginia Tech. Post-Columbine, federal lawmakers couldn’t muster the will to close the so-called gun-show loophole. In many states, gun-show weapons sales to this day are permitted without background checks.
And there is, unfortunately, more. Not only did this “agreement” with the NRA not actually help us where it’s needed most, but there are a few very troubling giveaways hidden in this legislation. Most notoriously, all veterans are completely excluded from the mental health background check. As the editorial says, no offense to veterans, but why say you’re “closing the loophole” when you’re really leaving a huge part of it wide open?
The NRA says it supports the move because it tightens existing safeguards, rather than expand controls. But, no surprise, there’s a gimmie or two for the NRA. Among the most troubling is the exclusion from the background-check system of veterans with mental health problems. No disrespect to these veterans’ service to this country, but wouldn’t you want to keep weapons from troubled individuals actually trained to hit a target?
The effect of this bill isn’t questionable– it will undoubtedly keep weapons out of the hands of some mentally ill persons in the United States, and for that reason, we support it. But the “agreements” made to pass this bill are very troubling, to say the least.
What we do question is why the Democrats felt they needed to bargain with the NRA in the first place. A majority of Americans are for stronger gun laws, and clearly getting this mental health information in the background check database is extremely important– you need to look no further than Virginia Tech for an example of that. Closing both this loophole and the gun show loophole are measure that need to be taken, as soon as possible, by all politicians, no matter what their party. As far as we can see, the NRA has nothing to do with it at all.
