Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said Tuesday that he plans to support the gun-control agreement a bipartisan group of senators announced on Sunday, but only if the text of the bill substantively reflects the proposed framework.
"For myself, I'm comfortable with the framework," McConnell told reporters. "And if the legislation ends up reflecting what the framework indicates, I'll be supportive." McConnell was not part of the bipartisan group of senators who hammered out the agreement.
According to a statement released by those 20 senators — 10 from each party — the proposed legislation would incentivize states to pass "red flag" laws. These would allow guns to be confiscated from "individuals whom a court has determined to be a significant danger to themselves or others."
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The bill would also increase funding for school security, direct billions of dollars toward mental health programs, expand background checks for gun buyers under the age of 21 to include juvenile justice records, and close the so-called "boyfriend loophole," preventing people who have abused their dating partners from buying firearms.
President Biden and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) have already thrown their support behind the bill. With McConnell's backing, it's very likely to pass.
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