GUN CONTROL

Trump Signals Support for ‘Intelligent Background Checks’ After Mass Shootings

Trump told reporters that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is “totally on board.”

In the wake of two mass shootings, President Trump claims that Congress will support “meaningful background checks” on gun purchases. “We have to have very meaningful background checks,” he told reporters on Friday. “I want to see it happen,” he said. “We need intelligent background checks.” Trump also insisted that Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is “totally on board.” Both Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said they spoke to Trump about gun control, and Pelosi penned a letter to Trump asking him to bring the Senate back from its summer recess to pass a bill mandating universal background check legislation. McConnell said he would not bring the Senate back from its recess, but said he would have a conversation about background checks when Congress returned. Trump added that he had spoken to members of the National Rifle Association, which spent $30 million dollars on Trump's 2016 campaign, “so that their very strong views can be fully represented and respected.”