NRA backs anti-gun group Join Forces on Capitol Hill

October 15, 2007 · Filed Under Gun Control, Legal News

New gun legislation related to the Virginia Tech campus shooting has the National Rifle Association and a violence prevention group calling for a cease-fire in a long-running dispute as the two rally their lobbying efforts on the Hill.

The NRA is urging Congress to tighten loopholes in the National Instant Criminal Background Check System, a government database that provides background checks on gun buyers. The changes, which stem from the Virginia Tech shooting last spring, would ensure that more mentally ill people are barred from purchasing firearms.

In a strange partnership, the legislation is also being backed by the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, a longtime opponent of guns and most NRA policy moves. The Brady Campaign was the original champion of the NICS database. Lobbyists for the group aim to win passage of the bill around the six-month anniversary of the shootings this month.

As a staunch supporter of gun rights, I think the NRA is making a good decision to join with the Brady Campaign on this issue. Clearly, mentally ill people should be allowed to by firearms and a bill like this will keep the horrible episode at Virginia Tech from every being repeated.

-Chris Jones