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The House of Representatives voted to pass an assault weapons ban Friday evening, with legislators narrowly approving the bill with a 217-213 vote.
The legislation will now head to the Senate, where it’s unlikely to break the filibuster.
Two Republicans, Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Penn., and Chris Jacobs, R-N.Y., broke with their party to vote yes on the bill. Five Democrats, Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas; Rep. Jared Golden, D-Maine, Rep. Vicente Gonzalez, D-Texas, Rep. Kurt Schrader, D-Oreg., and Rep. Ron Kind, D-Wisc. broke with their party to vote no.
President Biden said that a majority of Americans agree with the assault weapons ban and called on the Senate to pass it.
“The majority of the American people agree with this common sense action. The should Senate move quickly to get this bill to my desk, and I will not stop fighting until it does. There can be no greater responsibility than to do all we can to ensure the safety of our families, our children, our homes, our communities, and our nation,” Biden said. “Today, House Democrats acted by unifying to pass an assault weapons ban to keep weapons of war off our streets, save lives in this country, and reduce crime in our communities.”
HOUSE COMMITTEE APPROVES FIRST ASSAULT WEAPONS BAN BILL IN DECADES
The Capitol is seen under cloud cover in Washington, Tuesday, May 11, 2021. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) .
(AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
According to the bill’s summary, the Assault Weapons Ban of 2022 would make it illegal to “knowingly import, sell, manufacture, transfer, or possess a semiautomatic assault weapon (SAW) or large capacity ammunition feeding device (LCAFD).”
The ban on semi-automatic weapons comes after mass shootings in both Uvalde, Texas and Buffalo, New York.
DAVID HOGG DISRUPTS HOUSE HEARING ON BANNING ASSAULT WEAPONS
Assault-style rifles hang on display inside a Dallas, Texas gun shop, September 13, 2004.
(Reuters/Jeff Mitchell)
19 children and two adults were killed in the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas on May 24. 10 people were killed in the shooting at Tops grocery store in Buffalo, New York on May 14 in a crime that officials describe as racially motivated.
During a speech on the House floor on Friday, Speaker Nancy Pelosi said that the assault weapons ban is past-due.
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Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi of Calif., speaks during a news conference, Thursday, May 19, 2022, on Capitol Hill in Washington.
(AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
“Our nation has watched in unspeakable horror as assault weapons have been used in massacre after massacre in communities across the country. And disturbingly, so many of these mass shootings have targeted our precious children. In their schools, at the movies, at the malls and throughout our communities. That is why I rise today in strong support in reinstating the assault weapons ban, a long-overdue step to get deadly weapons off our streets,” Pelosi said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
