

After joining Senator Max Baucus in vocally opposing gun legislation in the Senate last week, Montana's Rep. Steve Daines spoke out this morning, April 15, against an identical bill presented to the U.S. House.

The legislation, known as King-Thompson (H.R. 1565) is sponsored by Rep. Pete King (R) NY and Rep. Mike Thompson (D) CA and is a house copy of the Senate amendment known as Manchin-Toomey.

“This bill, which mirrors a recent Senate proposal to expand background checks, holds threats to our Second Amendment rights, while doing little to actually address the underlying problems behind violent crimes,” Daines stated. “As thousands of Montanans have shared with me, expanding Washington bureaucracy and restricting the rights of law-abiding citizens is the wrong approach. This is the number one issue I hear about from the people of my great state. As a fifth-generation Montanan and lifelong sportsman, I am deeply commitment to protecting the rights that thousands of Montanans lawfully exercise every day. And we recognized the Second Amendment is not about hunting—it’s about freedom. That’s why I joined my colleague, Representative Steve Stockman, in calling on the House to block any proposals that undermine the Second Amendment. And I will continue to fight against any proposals— whether in the House or the Senate—that threaten Montanans’ Second Amendment rights.”

Meanwhile in the Senate, Montana's Junior Senator Jon Tester spoke out in favor of Manchin-Toomey. By doing so, Tester is taking a different tack on the debate from both Daines and Senior Senator Max Baucus.

"I think that what Senators Manchin and Toomey are trying to do with this amendment, is trying to make the second amendment stronger for the people who are law abiding gun owners," Tester said. "But yet trying to keep guns out of the hands of folks who cannot handle them in a responsible way and have a record of that . . . a court adjudicated record. So as we move forth from here and talk about what this bill does positively and negatively, I'm gonna tell you that I've read it, I've read it forwards and backwards. I've talked to folks and I can tell you that this makes my second amendment rights stronger. And for that I want to thank you. And here's how it does it: my second amendment rights are only put at risk by people who use them in an improper way, use guns in an improper way. This bipartisan agreement makes sure that we protect that second amendment by responsible gun owners.