Pennsylvania’s senators were cautiously optimistic with President Joe Biden’s executive actions on gun control on Thursday, while Congressman Glenn Thompson criticized the actions as an attack on the Second Amendment.
“Bypassing Congress, President Biden has signaled he is willing to use Executive Orders to attempt to erode our Second Amendment rights,” Thompson said. “This is a clear example of overreach and will not improve public safety, but rather punish responsible gun owners.”
He said there is a bright side.
“Fortunately, this also signals that the President doesn’t have the votes in Congress to get much further and we’ll remain vigilant in defending the 2nd Amendment and providing a check to these abuses,” Thompson concluded.
U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., lauded the measures, while U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., said he is still reviewing the actions.
Among the actions are a proposed rule to help stop “ghost guns,” or kits to build firearms; to take action defining when a stabilizing brace effectively turns a pistol into a short-barrelled rifle; to create model “red flag” legislation for states; and to invest in community violence intervention.
“President Biden is taking decisive action to confront the crisis of gun violence in our country. Congress needs to do its part now,” Casey said. “The House of Representatives has passed comprehensive background check legislation. The Senate should pass these bills, in addition to banning military-style assault weapons, limiting the size of magazines and passing legislation to support survivors of gun violence. We can’t allow Republican Senators to prevent the passage of these lifesaving measures by using (procedural filibuster). It’s time to act.”
In his statement, Toomey said this is an opportunity to strengthen the nation’s background check system, which he has been advocating.
“Lasting progress is made through the legislative process. I appreciate President Biden’s expressed willingness to work with both Republicans and Democrats to achieve this goal,” the senator said.
“If done in a manner that respects the rights of law-abiding citizens, I believe there is an opportunity to strengthen our background check system so that we are better able to keep guns away from those who have no legal right to them.”
