Senate OKs Assault Weapons Ban Extension
By JESSE J. HOLLAND, Associated Press
WASHINGTON (March 2) - The Senate voted Tuesday to extend for another decade a ban on military-style assault weapons, giving Democrats a rare victory on gun legislation that would also deny crime victims the ability to sue gunmakers and dealers.
Democratic presidential contenders John Kerry of Massachusetts and John Edwards of North Carolina broke away from the Super Tuesday campaign trail to cast the decisive votes in the 52-47 roll call.
The White House had preferred the assault weapons ban be kept off the legislation immunizing the gun industry from liability suits, the National Rifle Association's top priority this year.
''The semiautomatic ban, the gun show loophole, a variety of other kinds of issues could simply drag this bill down and deny us substantial tort reform,'' said Republican Sen. Larry Craig of Idaho, the bill's main sponsor who plans to vote against both measures.
House leaders said last year that they did not intend to renew the ban on the manufacture and importation of at least 19 types of common military-style assault weapons. Senate GOP leaders also argued against the ban, saying it was ineffective and unnecessary and could cause the House to kill the gunmaker immunity bill.
But with the help of a few Senate Republicans, including Senate Armed Services Chairman John Warner of Virginia, Democrats were able to get enough votes to approve the ban extension.
Democrats tried to get as much support as they could to renew the ban before it expires Sept. 13. The appearance of Kerry and Edwards in the Senate underscored the political overtones of the assault weapons issue. Most Democrats voted for the ban while most Republicans voted against it.
''Once again we're in a political season, and once again we're debating gun ownership,'' Craig said.
Democrats argued that law enforcement officers and regular citizens all would be safer if the assault weapons covered under the bill continued to be banned. ''These are weapons of war. They are designed to kill a lot of people quickly,'' said Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., who authored the 1994 gun ban while in the House.
Warner, who voted against the gun ban in 1994, said the testimony from law enforcement officials in his state convinced him to vote Tuesday for renewing it.
''Law enforcement has shown that it has reduced the use of these weapons in crime, so my words pale in significance to the law officers of the four corners of the commonwealth of Virginia,'' Warner said.
President Bush has staked out both sides of the issue, calling for the reauthorization of the assault weapons ban while arguing against the Senate's adding it to the gunmaker immunity bill.
The Senate also will vote later on requiring background checks on everyone who buys weapons at gun shows, where unlicensed sellers do not have to check buyers' backgrounds.
After other amendments, the Senate is expected to easily pass the gunmaker immunity bill. It would bar lawsuits against gun makers stemming from a crime in when a legally sold gun is used to commit the crime.
After Senate action, the measure goes to a House-Senate negotiating committee that will hammer out differences with the version passed by the GOP-controlled House last year.
The Senate bill is S. 1805. The House bill is HR 1036.
03-02-04 1216EST
