A Republican House member is calling on the GOP-led Senate to pass a bill expanding background checks for gun purchases.
New York Rep. Pete King will join Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer at a Long Island press conference Tuesday to demand Majority Leader Mitch McConnell take up the measure.
The legislation, which King co-sponsored, would implement a universal background check requirement for all firearm and ammunition purchases, passed the House on Feb. 27 by a vote of 240-190.
Only eight House Republicans backed the bill and McConnell hasn’t signaled he’s planning to take it up.
“There is no single law that can put an end to mass shootings or gun violence, but there are certainly proactive steps we can take to keep guns out of the hands of felons, domestic abusers, and the dangerously mentally ill,” King said in a statement provided to the Washington Examiner.
“When background checks are used, they keep guns out of the hands of people we all agree shouldn’t have guns,” King added. “As government officials it is our responsibility to protect our citizens, and when it comes to gun violence we must do more. The overwhelming majority of Americans want to see action, and we owe it to the victims and their families to prevent such tragedies from occurring again.”
[Also read: The Trump gun trajectory: From banning assault weapons to NRA endorsement]
