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At least 30 people have been killed and dozens more wounded in less than 24 hours in this nation. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who didn't even bother to respond to CNN's request for an interview, is sending his "prayers" and putting the onus on law enforcement to "keep Americans safe and bring justice."
But he refuses to give law enforcement the tools it needs to do it's damn job. The House passed legislation all the way back in February to strengthen background checks. Eight Republicans joined Democrats to pass these bills, the bare minimum of what needs to happen to stem the availability of weapons of war to domestic terrorists. McConnell has refused to bring them to the floor.
That has to end. Ohio Democrat Sen. Sherrod Brown, whose constituents were this morning's victims, is telling McConnell to "bring us back have us do our job. Put this on the floor we know it works. We know it's only- it may only be a first step, but we know it works and there's just simply no reason that Mitch McConnell won't do that except for the gun lobby." So is Sen. Bernie Sanders.
So is their former congressional colleague, former-Rep. Gabby Giffords, whose congressional career ended when she was nearly killed in 2011. "President Donald Trump and Leader Mitch McConnell must call the Senate back from August recess immediately," she tweeted Sunday. "We cannot afford to wait another day for lawmakers to address this horrific national public safety threat."
Yes. It's time for the Senate to act. Even a Republican agrees. Sen. Tim Scott (R-LA) told "Face the Nation's" Major Garrett "I’d leave tonight. I’ll go tomorrow. It doesn’t matter to me. […] We have an opportunity to come back and act."
If McConnell won't do it, Senate Democrats need to do it on their own. They can all return and take over the Senate floor for the pro forma session that convenes Tuesday morning at 9:00. They can occupy the floor and get the nation's attention. They can maximize pressure on McConnell, Moscow Mitch, when he's already reeling from in the national media spotlight for not acting on election security. If they can't force him to act, they can further shame him before the nation. Now's the time.