By Jordain Carney, The Hill–
Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) has taken over the Senate floor and is refusing to allow the chamber to go into other business until his colleagues do something about gun control.
“I’m prepared to stand on this floor and talk about the need for this body to come together on keeping terrorists away from getting guns … for, frankly, as long as I can, because I know that we can come together on this issue,” said Murphy, who has made a name for himself in the Senate for repeated calls to write stronger gun control laws.
Murphy didn’t say how long he plans to talk on the Senate floor. The Senate is considering the Commerce, Justice and Science spending bill.
Murphy did allow his home-state colleague, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), to interrupt him so that Blumenthal could talk about gun control. Sens. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), the Senate’s No. 2 Democrat, also spoke with Murphy on the floor.
Under the chamber’s rules, Murphy can allow other senators to speak without losing control of the floor.
Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Neb.) joined the Democratic talkathon Wednesday afternoon, asking Murphy a question about the terrorist watchlist.
“I’m familiar with the terrorist screening database. There are a series of lists that fall from the database, but I don’t think there’s any such thing as ‘the terrorist watchlist,’ and I certainly don’t understand what due process rights would apply,” Sasse said.
Calls for stronger gun control have reemerged on Capitol Hill after the Orlando nightclub shooting on Sunday morning, when 49 people were killed by a lone gunman armed with an AR-15 assault rifle.
Murphy’s state is home to one of the most infamous shootings in American history: the 2012 killing of 20 school children and six adults at the Sandy Hook elementary school in Newtown, Conn.
“I can’t tell you how hard it is to look into the eyes of the families of those little boys and girls who were killed in Sandy Hook and tell them that almost four years later we’ve done nothing, nothing at all,” Murphy said.
His speech comes as the Senate is heading into a fight over keeping suspected terrorists from being able to buy guns.
“I know this isn’t going to make me popular with many of my colleagues or with the leadership of this body, but I don’t think we should proceed with debate on amendment to this bill until we have figured out a way to come together.,” Murphy said, referring to the appropriations bill.
By holding the floor, Democrats are preventing their colleagues from making any amendments to the spending legislation “pending” — a first step to eventually getting a vote. They’re also blocking Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) from ending debate. It’s unlikely the Republican leader would have tried to wrap the legislation on Wednesday, only hours after the Senate started working on the bill.
Murphy said he wants lawmakers to get a deal on blocking suspected terrorists from being able to buy guns and strengthening background checks.
Democrats are pushing a proposal from Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) that would give the attorney general broad authority to block individuals on the terrorist watch list from buying a gun or an explosive.
Chris Harris, Murphy’s communications director, said Murphy and Democrats “are holding the floor because they will not accept inaction or half measures in the face of continued slaughter.”
“Until private sales at gun shows and over the internet also require stringent background checks and unless suspected terrorists on the no fly list are prohibited from legally purchasing guns, our lax gun laws will continue to allow terrorists and criminals to amass a weapons stockpile. Senator Murphy will remain on the floor demanding the Senate adopt these measures,” he added.
Updated at 12:59 p.m.
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