President Joe Biden celebrated the Senate passage of a new gun control bill on Thursday evening, thanks to 15 Senate Republicans who supported the bill.
“Tonight we acted,” Biden wrote, noting that the Senate had finally pulled away from “28 years of inaction” thanks to the bipartisan support for gun control.
Fifteen Senate Republicans supported the bill that passed Thursday night with a vote of 65-33.
- Mitch McConnell (R-KY)
- Roy Blunt (R-MO)
- Richard Burr (R-NC)
- Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV)
- Bill Cassidy (R-LA)
- Susan Collins (R-ME)
- John Cornyn (R-TX)
- Joni Ernst (R-IA)
- Lindsey Graham (R-SC)
- Lisa Murkowski (R-AK)
- Rob Portman (R-OH)
- Mitt Romney (R-UT)
- Thom Tillis (R-NC)
- Pat Toomey (R-PA)
- Todd Young (R-IN)
The $13 billion bill would make it harder for gun purchasers under 18 to buy weapons, strengthen background checks, fund state efforts to enact red flag laws, and also fund school safety and mental health.
“This bipartisan legislation will help protect Americans. Kids in schools and communities will be safer because of it,” Biden said, calling for the House of Representatives to pass the Senate bill so he could sign it.
The House is expected to pass the bill on Friday.
The bill was opposed by the National Rifle Association, which warned it could be abused to “infringe upon the rights of law-abiding Americans.”