Missouri Republicans Issue Letter to Senator Roy Blunt Opposing Gun Deal – Opinion

Roy Blunt, a Republican from Missouri (Senator for the Show-Me State), is currently in the final stretch of his term. He’s one of 10 Republicans working on a bi-partisan effort (spearheaded by John Cornyn (R-TX) and Chris Murphy (D-CT)) to create gun control legislation, largely in response to the recent mass shootings in Buffalo, New York, and Uvalde, Texas.

One of the key components of the rumored legislation (no one knows for certain as the draft bill itself has not yet been completed) is a focus on “red flag laws,” with incentives offered to states for enacting them.

The Washington Post published a report last Sunday stating that there had been a preliminary agreement.

The tentative agreement would see a federal grant program encourage the states to adopt red-flag legislations that would allow them to confiscate guns from those considered to be a threat. Federal criminal background checks on gun buyers under 21 years old would also include mandatory searches of mental and juvenile records.

However, many Missouri lawmakers expressed doubts about the proposed deal. They wrote to Senator Blunt to express their concern. The letter, penned by State Representative Tony Lovasco (R-O’Fallon), was signed onto by 44 other representatives and four state senators.

According to the Missouri Independent

The letter noted that the majority of red-flag laws permit courts to seize firearms from dangerous persons without needing a criminal record and often without having the person being tried in court.

“The proposal in question seeks to allow Congress to deflect responsibility for enacting such horrid laws by essentially punting to the states,” the letter states. “Knowing that forcing such immoral and unconstitutional provisions nationwide would not garner enough votes to overcome a filibuster, Senator (Chris) Murphy instead proposes to bribe states with their own tax money to do his dirty work for him.”

Shortly after the publication of this letter, several other lawmakers from different states expressed their support.

An editorial note:

Representative Hannah Kelly, Senator Nate Tate and Senator Rick Brattin tried to sign this letter, but they contacted me after I had sent it.

Although it is unlikely that Senator Blunt will read my tweets, I want to let my readers know my thoughts. #moleg https://t.co/l3KialRNqE

— Rep. Tony Lovasco (MO-64) (@tonylovasco) June 16, 2022

This letter goes on:

Your vote for this bill may seem like a safe bet. Missouri has proven time and again that it is.
It was repeatedly stated again and again that such laws would not be passed by the General Assembly. Although this may hold true for some, it is not the truth.
Others will lack the ability to do so. Voting for this measure would directly allow it to be implemented.
The spread of confiscation laws across the country and normalize support for eventual
This nation should be disarmed.

It’s reasonable to conclude that not all aspects of Senator Murphy’s proposal are objectionable, and
Bipartisan discussions around any legislation are a good part of the process. However, under no
In no circumstances should any bill which contains gun control provisions or the confiscation of firearms be allowed to move.
Any type, however small or insignificant it might seem.

Rather makes one nostalgic for the pre-17th Amendment days, doesn’t it?

Monday morning saw Representative Lovasco join Mike Ferguson on NewsTalkSTL.com’s Morning Show to talk about the letter. Lovasco said that he has not received an answer from Senator Blunt regarding the matter as of Monday morning.