Why This Weekend's Tragedies Probably Still Won't Be Enough to Push Congress to Act on Gun Control

As one of the few Republicans who supports universal background checks, King said the onus would be on the President to ensure gun control remains in the national conversation, and that he should use his platform to push for background checks.Trump had indicated early Monday morning that he would support legislation strengthening background checks, tweeting that he wanted to pair the policy with immigration reform. Shortly after Trump’s address, Democrats continued their renewed push to convince Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to bring his chamber back to Washington from the August recess to vote on legislation the House of Representatives had passed in February expanding and strengthening background checks. King, who was one of the eight, acknowledged that even if McConnell did hold a vote, the bill would fail to garner the necessary 60 votes for passage.The majority leader issued another statement Monday evening, stating that he had discussed the President’s priorities with several Senate committee chairs and “encouraged them to engage in bipartisan discussions of potential solutions to help protect our communities without infringing on Americans’ constitutional rights.”He made no mention of the House Democrats’ legislation and the calls to return to the Capitol.But even Republican senators who have offered legislative solutions that may be more palatable are also not pushing for a quick return to Washington.