U.S. Senate fails to pass new gun control restrictions in wake of Orlando shooting

WASHINGTON. KAZINFORM - The US Senate failed to advance new restrictions aimed at curtailing gun violence on Monday, as lawmakers voted down four separate measures just one week after a terrorist attack in Orlando marked the deadliest mass shooting in the nation's history, The Guardian reports.

Democrats and Republicans had put forth competing amendments to both strengthen background checks and prevent suspected terrorists from purchasing firearms. But all four bills fell short of the 60 votes needed to clear a procedural hurdle in the Senate, in a near replica of a vote held in December when a pair of shooters killed 14 people and wounded 22 more in San Bernardino, California.

The series of votes on Monday evening came in the aftermath of 12 June massacre at an LGBT nightclub in Orlando, Florida, which left 49 people dead and another 53 injured. Senate Democrats had secured the votes following a 15-hour filibuster last week demanding action against gun violence, a politically vexing issue that has yet to produce any major legislative breakthroughs in more than two decades.

The chamber first voted on dueling proposals related to the federal background checks systems.

The Republican amendment, which aimed to pour more resources into prosecuting violations of the current background checks system but did not expand it in any way, fell short by a vote of 53-47. The Democratic alternative, which would have required background checks for all gun sales except for gifts and loans between immediate family members, failed by a vote of 44-56.

A subsequent series of votes failed on the issue of prohibiting access to firearms for individuals on the FBI's terror watch list, but lawmakers have indicated a compromise might still be feasible in the coming days. Susan Collins, a Republican senator from Maine, was expected to unveil a proposal seeking middle ground between the two parties as early as Tuesday.

A proposal by Democrats that would have barred the sale of firearms to all individuals on the terror watch list failed to advance in a 47-53 vote. The Republican amendment, which would have enabled the justice department to delay an individual on the FBI terror watch list from completing a gun purchase for a period of 72 hours, was voted down 53-47. The Republican plan, backed by the NRA, would have required the attorney general to prove to a judge that there was probable cause for the firearm sale to be denied.

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