Sen. Tim Scott said he wants to make sure the systems in place to prevent mass shootings work better after 17 people died at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Wednesday.
The South Carolina Republican said on CBS’ “Face the Nation” Sunday that several terrible shootings — in Charleston, S.C.; Sutherland Springs, Texas; and the most recent tragedy — could have all been prevented if the system worked.
“I want to make sure that we can solve that problem. When you look at the core components that are missing, it seems to be the system, when the system has not done the right job. In Charleston, the background check could have prevented that person … from getting a weapon,” he said.
He added, “We all say if you see something, say something. And Parkland community, we saw people reporting, there were 20 calls to the sheriff’s department, they responded. The FBI received legitimate, credible tip and it was not followed up upon. What we have seen in three major atrocities is that the system that was in place simply was not followed.”
Scott is a co-sponsor on legislation to strengthen the nation’s instant background check system.
He said he hopes that legislation moves quickly.
“We are putting more pressure on our system and to include in the Senate to make sure that that legislation gets to the floor. Sen. [Chuck] Grassley has been very clear, the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, plans to bring that legislation up,” he said.
“It is bipartisan legislation support from folks like [Sen.] Chris Murphy in Connecticut and myself in South Carolina. The reality of it is that we have a sense of urgency about getting that done. I’m very hopeful that this is the time that we see this nation’s leadership united to solve a problem that could have prevented atrocities.”
