The House voted 240-175 on Thursday to remove veterans considered mentally incompetent by the Veterans Affairs Department for financial reasons from the list of names automatically denied gun permits by the FBI.
“I strongly believe we must do everything in our power to protect the rights guaranteed to all Americans, especially the men and women who have served, by the Constitution,” said the bill’s sponsored, Rep. Phil Roe, R-Tenn.
“The Veterans Second Amendment Protection Act does just that. I’m proud to stand with my colleagues in passing this important legislation that ensures no veteran who utilizes a fiduciary will lose their second amendment rights without due process.”
Most Democrats, many veterans groups and gun-safety organizations opposed the bill, which would prevent the VA from forwarding the names of ex-service members who need help with their finances to the FBI for inclusion in the National Instant Criminal Background Check System.
“Every day in this country, more than 20 veterans commit suicide, and the vast majority use a gun,” said Rep. Elizabeth Esty, D-Ill., a leading opponent of the bill. “And yet today, the House advanced a bill…that would make it easier, not harder, for veterans in mental health crisis to buy guns.”
The National Rifle Association supports the bill.
“No veteran should have their fundamental right to self-defense arbitrarily revoked by a government bureaucrat,” stated NRA Executive Director Chris Cox.
“Receiving assistance to handle personal finances does not mean an individual is unable to safely own a firearm. Denying veterans their Second Amendment rights with no due process is shameful.”
A dozen Democrats joined most Republicans in voting for Roe’s bill while two Republicans, Reps. Dan Donovan of New York and Leonard Lance of New Jersey, opposed it.
