On Sunday’s “Meet the Press” on NBC, junior Republican Arizona Sen. Jeff Flake said gun-control advocates are wrong to insist on universal background checks, primarily because of the bureaucratic nightmare they would create.

“Sure, I’ve actually introduced legislation with Sen. [Lindsay] Graham, Sen. [Mark] Begich and Sen. [Mark] Pryor, with regard to mental health issues,” Flake said. “We do need to strengthen the background check system. But universal background checks, I think, is a bridge too far for most of us.”

“The paperwork requirements alone would be significant,” Flake added. “Even if there are exemptions for a father passing on a gun to his son or daughter, you’d still have issues with people in a private setting transferring or loaning a gun for somebody — loaning a shotgun to go on a duck hunt, for example.”

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