Currents News Staff
Starting August 9, President Trump will be away from Washington while on vacation. The House of Representatives and the Senate will also be out of session until September.
However, this vacation isn’t stopping political leaders from discussing what to do about gun control in the wake of two mass shootings that left 31 people dead in Ohio and Texas.
“We have tremendous support for really common sense, sensible, important background checks,” he said, telling reporters that lawmakers – both Democratic and Republican – support taking such precautions.
“I will tell you I spoke to Mitch McConnell yesterday. He’s totally on board. He said, ‘I’ve been waiting for your call.’ He is totally on board. I spoke yesterday to Nancy Pelosi, we had a great talk. I spoke to Chuck Schumer, we had a great talk,” Trump said.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell appeared less committal in an earlier radio interview, saying he wouldn’t bring the Senate back from their recess to debate the issue despite calls for him to do so.
“We’re going to begin the discussions here on August break, and when we get back, hopefully we’ll be in a position to agree on things,” McConnell said.
This prompted backlash from Democrats eager to see gun legislation on the Senate floor.
“Donald Trump, Mitch McConnell, the National Rifle Association, their playbook has always been, ‘How do we slow-walk this, how do we mealy mouth it until it goes away, until the news cycle changes, until something happens in the world,’” said Presidential Candidate and Deomcratic Representative Tim Ryan.
This is not the first time Trump has promised action on background checks. He also expressed support after last year’s high school shooting in Parkland, only to change course later.