Important step forward on guns

It is a fortunate coincidence in the ongoing gun safety debate that the most important measure proposed by President Barack Obama is also the most popular with Americans. Over 90 percent of voters support Congress passing a universal background check in the wake of Newtown and the flood of murders that have occurred over the past year as a result of gun violence.

Americans have had enough. And now even some the most pro-gun members in Congress are moving toward a bipartisan bill that would pass such checks. The bill being introduced in the Senate by Tom Coburn (R-Okla.), Joe Manchin (D-W. Va.), Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) and Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) is gaining momentum, and this weekend John McCain (R-Ariz.) predicted the bill would receive wide bipartisan support.

Law enforcement officers and many gun control advocates believe that universal background checks and tough gun trafficking law together will do more to slow down the murder tally caused by guns than anything else Washington can do. That includes passing gun safety provisions that I support, such as an assault weapon ban and the regulation of high-capacity magazines. While both of those measures have gained great support after Newtown, police officers say neither would have as big an impact of a universal background check system. Both also come with their own built-in legislative challenges.

So, for now, it seems likely that the single most important piece of gun safety legislation before Congress is also the bill most likely to be passed into law. For once, it seems, the laws of modern American politics seem to be tilted toward what is best for the people.