Washington (CNN) House Speaker Paul Ryan signaled Tuesday he isn't supportive of the proposals to impose new restrictions on gun purchases, telling reporters "we shouldn't be banning guns for law abiding citizens."

During a weekly news conference in the wake of the mass shooting at a Florida high school that killed 17 people, the Wisconsin Republican added, "we should be focusing on making sure that citizens who shouldn't get guns in the first place don't get those guns."

Instead, the speaker focused on narrow legislation to address gaps in the database used to process guns sales that he noted the House already approved.

"We do know there are gaps in the background check system that need to be plugged," he said. "We passed a bill to do that and we think that should get done clearly."

The House-passed bill was attached to another a proposal that loosens gun regulations and allows those with permits to carry concealed weapons to legally travel with those firearms to other states, a top priority of the National Rifle Association and something that many congressional observers say won't get the 60 votes it needs to get through the Senate.

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