This week, or perhaps next, the Senate will pass a gun violence control bill. I cannot believe that a filibuster will be upheld. With any luck, the bill will contain a strong universal background check provision that has the backing of a significant number of Republicans. This will be necessary to create the cover John Boehner needs to introduce a bill on the House floor. The more GOP Senators who vote for the Senate version, the easier it will be rank and file House members to join the effort.
Another consideration is that the more Republicans vote for this legislation, the less likely we are to see the party itself pursue the lie that the government is seeking to confiscate people’s guns or create some kind of national gun registry. That’s important because arguments along those lines can incite some unstable people to commit acts of violence. We don’t want a law intended to prevent violence to perversely turn around and cause it. For this reason, it’s important that we have as much bipartisanship on this as possible.