Political divisions stall proposed gun policies in Pennsylvania, where assassin took aim at Trump

Months before a gunman targeted Donald Trump at a presidential campaign rally in rural Pennsylvania, some state lawmakers had proposed banning the type of gun used in the assassination attempt.

The legislation stalled without a vote, but that was no surprise. Politically divided Pennsylvania has been at a standstill on gun policy for years, and lacks the support to strengthen or relax existing gun laws.

It is unlikely that this will change as a result of the shooting at Trump’s rallyin which one attendee was killed, two others were seriously injured and the ear of the Republican presidential candidate was injured.

“Unfortunately, we’re likely to be stuck with our comparable gun laws, which are not strong enough,” said Democratic Rep. Ben Sanchez, the sponsor of several gun control measures, including one to ban certain semi-automatic firearms.

Legislatures in more than half of states have passed new gun laws this year, nearly as many as the year before, according to an Associated Press survey. That has led to more restrictions in Democratic-led states, such as longer waiting times to buy guns in Maine and New Mexico and a ban on the sale of ammunition to under-21s in Hawaii.

In states where Republicans are in control, these new laws have generally strengthened gun rights, including new adult eligibility requirements. carrying concealed weapons without a permit in Louisiana and South Carolina. Numerous GOP-led states have also passed bans on the use of special gun store tracking codes for credit card purchases.

But political divisions often thwart gun legislation in Pennsylvania. One exception was in October 2018, when then-Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf signed a bill passed by the Republican-led House and Senate, which requires people convicted of domestic violence or subject to a restraining order to surrender their weapons within 24 hours.

A few weeks later, a fatal mass Pittsburgh synagogue shooting Putting Pennsylvania back in the spotlight. The General Assembly responded by creating a five-year, $5 million grant program to fund security improvements for houses of worship and other non-profit organizations that may be targets of hate crimes.

But since then there has been little agreement between the two parties.

In 2021, Wolf vetoed a Republican-backed bill to allow people carrying concealed weapons without a permit. The following year vetoed another GOP-backed bill that would allow lawsuits to be filed against local governments that regulate the possession, transfer or transportation of guns, in violation of a state ban on such local ordinances.

But Wolf wasn’t the only one blocking bills. House Republicans used a procedural move in 2022 to block a Democratic bill that would have prevented people under 21 from owning certain semi-automatic weapons. Republicans completely changed the law to allow anyone to carry concealed weapons. It ultimately did not become law.

In the November 2022 elections, Democrats won a one-seat majority in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives and quickly passed several gun control measures.

The House bills passed last year to expand background checks for gun sales and allow judges to seize guns — at the request of police or family members — from people deemed dangerous to themselves or others. This year, the House a bill passed to ban “ghost guns,” which do not have serial numbers. But all three measures stalled in the Republican-led state Senate.

Three other measures failed in narrow votes in the House. They include bills that would ban rapid-fire trigger devices, require gun sales to be reported electronically to state police, and require gun owners to report lost or stolen weapons within 72 hours.

Sanchez’s Bill Banning Assault Weapons emerged from a House Committee in January, but has not advanced. While the bill had an exception for weapons that are already legally owned, Sanchez said it was intended to ban the type of AR-15-style rifle that authorities say was used by the 20-year-old man who shot Trump.

Following the shooting, Pennsylvania Attorney General Michelle Henry called on lawmakers in Pennsylvania, other states and Congress to enact an “assault rifle ban.”

“When one of the most secure and protected individuals on the planet — a former president of the United States — is not immune to the dangers posed by the prevalence and accessibility of high-powered, long-range assault weapons, we must respond and reexamine our collective indifference to addressing this problem,” Henry told AP.

Ten states and the District of Columbia already have laws prohibiting the sale, transfer or manufacture of assault weapons. However, definitions vary.

But it is politically difficult to implement such bans because the AR-15 has become a “symbol of freedom” for ardent gun rights advocates, said Adam Garber, executive director of the gun violence prevention organization CeaseFirePA.

Trump did not mention gun policy when he talked about his shooting during a speech at the Republican National ConventionBut some Trump supporters said they remain wary of efforts to further restrict guns.

“I think the gun laws we have are pretty good,” said Michele Tomsik, a nurse who attended Trump’s rally with her 15-year-old daughter and crouched with others on the floor as shots rang out.

The shooter used a gun that authorities said his father purchased legally and searched online for information about major depressive disorder, though investigators have not determined whether he had actually been diagnosed.

Tomsik said she wants to see more government funding for mental health care, but she also said the shooting raises questions about guns.

“Why do you have an AR? Where did that come from? How did he get it and why?” Tomsik said rhetorically. “But I do worry that if we roll everything back like that, they’re going to take away more and more Second Amendment rights.

Research is largely inconclusive about the effectiveness of state bans on “assault-style” rifles, said Rosanna Smart, co-director of the RAND Gun Policy in America Initiative, which published an analysis earlier this week.

The RAND Report said there is better research on other gun policies. It cited supporting evidence that safe gun storage laws reduce gun injuries and deaths among young people; higher minimum age requirements for gun purchases can reduce youth suicides; and more gun homicides are associated with looser concealed carry laws and stand-your-ground self-defense laws.

According to Smart, high-profile incidents like the attempted assassination of Trump often lead to renewed discussions about gun policy and mass shootings.

“It’s going to be really hard to know what kinds of gun policies are going to be effective in reducing their prevalence,” she said. “But they do provide opportunities to step back and rethink the state and federal legal landscapes around guns.”