Politicsmanchin toomey compromisegun votePolitics

Pat Toomey Blames Obama For Failure Of Gun Bill

GOP Senator: Obama Is To Blame For Failure Of Background Checks
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Politics reporter, The Huffington Post

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Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) blamed President Barack Obama Tuesday for the defeat in the Senate of legislation to expand background checks.

"I would suggest the administration brought this on themselves," Toomey said in an interview with The Morning Call. "I think the president ran his re-election campaign in a divisive way. He divided Americans. He was using resentment of some Americans toward others to generate support for himself. That was very divisive, that has consequences, that lingers."

"I understand why people have some apprehension about this administration," he added. "I don't agree with the conclusion as it applies to my [background checks] amendment, but I understand where the emotion comes from."

Last Wednesday, Toomey's amendment, crafted with Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), fell short of the 60-vote threshold needed to pass the Senate with a final vote of 54 to 46. Only three Republicans joined Toomey by voting in its favor: Sens. Susan Collins (Maine), Mark Kirk (Ill.) and John McCain (Ariz.). Three red state Democrats facing reelection in 2014, Sens. Max Baucus (Mont.), Mark Begich (Alaska) and Mark Pryor (Ark.) voted against the measure. Baucus has since announced that he will not seek reelection. Other amendments, such as a strengthened federal gun trafficking statute, ban on assault weapons and limit on high-capacity magazines, also failed.

The failure of the legislation can hardly be attributed to Obama, who pressed for measures to reduce gun violence after the elementary school shooting in Newtown, Conn., took the lives of 20 children and six educators. The president's gun control agenda included farther-reaching reforms, such as bans on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, but he later focused the push on expanded background checks, which have the support of 90 percent of Americans.

The White House even endorsed the Toomey-Manchin compromise, which would have expanded background checks for firearm purchases but was a significantly watered-down alternative to legislation initially sought by Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.).

Obama addressed the failure of the Toomey-Manchin amendment shortly after the vote last week, flanked by Newtown families and former Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D), who was shot in the head in the 2011 mass shooting in Tucson, Ariz. The president said the National Rifle Association "willfully lied" about the bill, escalating the pressure on pro-gun lawmakers to thwart the legislation.

Manchin, Toomey's co-author in the process, has pointed to that pressure to explain the bill's defeat.

"The pressure! Oh, the outside pressures," Manchin told The Huffington Post. "I guess sometimes the trappings of being in elected office are overwhelming."

Toomey's comments instead reflect a need to throw red meat at a conservative base that might feel incensed by his partnership with Democrats.

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Before You Go

Pivotal Moments In The Federal Gun Control Debate
1981: The Attempted Assassination Of President Ronald Reagan(01 of10)
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on March 30, 1981, President Reagan and three others were shot and wounded in an assassination attempt by John Hinckley, Jr. outside the Washington Hilton Hotel in Washington, D.C. Reagan's press secretary, Jim Brady, was shot in the head. (credit:Ron Edmonds, AP)
1993: The Brady Handgun Violence Act (02 of10)
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The Brady Handgun Violence Act of 1993, signed into law by President Bill Clinton, mandated that federally licensed dealers complete comprehensive background checks on individuals before selling them a gun. The legislation was named for James Brady, who was shot during an attempted assassination of President Ronald Reagan in 1981.
1994: The Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act(03 of10)
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The Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act, signed into law by President Bill Clinton in 1994, instituted a ban on 19 kinds of assault weapons, including Uzis and AK-47s. The crime bill also banned the possession of magazines holding more than ten rounds of ammunition. (An exemption was made for weapons and magazines manufactured prior to the ban.)
2004: Law Banning Magazines Holding More Than Ten Rounds Of Ammunition Expires(04 of10)
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In 2004, ten years after it first became law, Congress allowed a provision banning possession of magazines holding more than ten rounds of ammunition to expire through a sunset provision. Brady Campaign President Paul Helmke told HuffPost that the expiration of this provision meant that Rep. Gabby Giffords's alleged shooter was able to fire off 20-plus shots without reloading (under the former law he would have had only ten).
2007: The U.S. Court of Appeals For The District Of Columbia Rules In Favor Of Dick Heller(05 of10)
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In 2007 The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ruled to allow Dick Heller, a licensed District police officer, to keep a handgun in his home in Washington, D.C. Following that ruling, the defendants petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the case.
2008: The NICS Improvement Amendments Act(06 of10)
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Following the deadly shooting at Virginia Tech University, Congress passed legislation to require states provide data on mentally unsound individuals to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System, with the aim of halting gun purchases by the mentally ill, and others prohibited from possessing firearms. The bill was signed into law by President George W. Bush in January of 2008.
2008: Supreme Court Strikes Down D.C. Handgun Ban As Unconstitutional(07 of10)
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In June of 2008, the United States Supreme Court upheld the verdict of a lower court ruling the D.C. handgun ban unconstitutional in the landmark case District of Columbia v. Heller.
Gabrielle Giffords And Trayvon Martin Shootings(08 of10)
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Gun control advocates had high hopes that reform efforts would have increased momentum in the wake of two tragic events that rocked the nation.In January of 2011, Jared Loughner opened fire at an event held by Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.), killing six and injuring 13, including the congresswoman. Resulting attempts to push gun control legislation proved fruitless, with neither proposal even succeeding in gaining a single GOP co-sponsor.More than a year after that shooting, Florida teenager Trayvon Martin was gunned down by George Zimmerman in an event that some believed would bring increased scrutiny on the nation's Stand Your Ground laws. While there has been increasing discussion over the nature of those statutes, lawmakers were quick to concede that they had little faith the event would effectively spur gun control legislation, thanks largely to the National Rifle Association's vast lobbying power.Read more here: (credit:AP)
Colorado Movie Theater Shooting(09 of10)
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In July of 2012, a heavily armed gunman opened fire on theatergoers attending a midnight premiere of the final film of the latest Batman trilogy, killing 12 and wounding scores more.The suspect, James Eagan Holmes, allegedly carried out the act with a number of handguns, as well as an AR-15 assault rifle with a 100-round drum magazine.Some lawmakers used the incident, which took place in a state with some of the laxest gun control laws, to bring forth legislation designed to place increased regulations on access to such weapons, but many observers, citing previous experience, were hesitant to say that they would be able to overcome the power of the National Rifle Association and Washington gun lobby. (credit:AP)
Sikh Temple Shooting(10 of10)
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On August 5, 2012, white supremacist Wade Michael Page opened fire on a Sikhs gathered at a temple in Oak Creek, Wis., killing six and wounding four more before turning the gun on himself. (credit:AP)
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