Lawmakers are pushing for bipartisan gun legislation

WASHINGTON (Nexstar) – During National Survivors of Gun Violence Week, lawmakers on Capitol Hill are once again pushing for bipartisan universal background check legislation.

A Democrat and a Republican are teaming up to push for universal background checks for gun sales.

“Every day, 30 people are killed by someone with a gun. And if you add in suicides and accidental gun deaths, it goes up to 100 people a day,” said Representative Mike Thompson (D-CA).

Guns are now the leading cause of death for children, which is why California Congressman Mike Thompson and Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick say new federal background check legislation is urgent.

“Every day that goes by that this is not the law of the land is a day that more lives are needlessly endangered,” said Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA).

Lawmakers say their bill will not infringe on the rights of law-abiding citizens and instead close loopholes that make it easier for criminals to obtain guns.

Rep. Fitzpatrick says the bill will also help with the mass shooting crisis in the US and “make sure firearms are kept out of the hands of domestic abusers, out of the hands of felons, and out of the hands of the mentally ill. ”

“It’s going to be at the top of my list of requests from the leadership — to just give him a word,” Fitzpatrick said.

But even if enough Republicans help pass the bill in the House, it is likely to fail in the Senate.

“The only corner of America where background checks are not bipartisan is on the floor of the United States Senate,” said Representative Mike Thompson (D-CA).

Still, Thompson says it’s only a matter of time before universal background checks become law, but stresses that time is of the essence.

Democrats are also introducing legislation to ban assault weapons, but that bill will be even more difficult for Congress to pass.