On the recordFebruary 14, 2017
it is Valentine's Day, and Senate Republicans and President Trump want to deliver a love letter to their sweetheart, the National Rifle Association. To the Republicans and President Trump, nothing says ``I love you'' like ``let's weaken background checks on gun sales'' because that is exactly the issue before us today. Today, Republicans in Congress and President Trump want to gut a commonsense safety measure that would help keep guns out of the hands of people who should not have them. After the tragedy in Newtown, CT, the Obama administration undertook a comprehensive review of Federal law to identify ``potentially dangerous individuals'' who should not be trusted with firearms. The Social Security Administration was required to identify and report to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System those people who received Social Security benefits due to severe mental impairment and who require a fiduciary representative to manage those benefits. That is a sensible policy. If you can't manage your disability benefits because of a mental impairment, you probably shouldn't be trying to manage a gun. Indeed, current law prohibits individuals from purchasing a firearm if a court, a board, a commission, or other lawful authority has determined that a mental health issue makes them a danger to themselves or to others or that they lack the mental capacity to contract or manage their own affairs.…
