Poll: Were Republicans right to adjourn the gun control special session?

It’ll be after the November 5 General Election before state lawmakers take up any new gun control measures.

Senate Republicans on Tuesday voted to adjourn a special session called by Gov. Ralph Northam (D) to address gun laws, following the mass shooting in Virginia Beach that killed 12 and wounded four others.

Senator Richard Stuart (R, Stafford, Prince William) said:

Today, the Senate made a motion to take no further action on gun control measures until the Virginia Crime Commission has evaluated the submitted proposals.

While some may point their finger saying this was a brash political maneuver, I want to be very clear. We very much have a crisis on our hands – it is a mental health crisis!

We need a well thought out process for how we are going to address these issues, instead of bargaining our citizens’ constitutionally guaranteed rights.

Allowing the Virginia Crime Commission, a professional state agency, to make recommendations, through an evidence-based approach instead of a knee-jerk political reaction, is the best way to address the crisis at hand.

Gov. Ralph Northam said:

“I called legislators back to Richmond for this special session so we could take immediate action to address the gun violence emergency that takes more than a thousand Virginians’ lives each year. I expected lawmakers to take this seriously. I expected them to do what their constituents elected them to do—discuss issues and take votes.

“An average of three Virginians die each day due to gun violence. That means hundreds of Virginians may die between today and November 18, the next day the legislature plans to work.

“It is shameful and disappointing that Republicans in the General Assembly refuse to do their jobs, and take immediate action to save lives. I expected better of them. Virginians expect better of them.”