Illinois congressman Adam Kinzinger accused fellow Republican representative Marjorie Taylor Greene of lying “for profit” after she claimed that a House bill would create a “national gun registry”.
Mr Kinzinger was responding to a tweet from Ms Greene in which she said: “HR 8 would create a national gun registry, which we all know is the first step towards ‘mandatory buybacks’ aka confiscation.
“HR 1446 would create a nationwide ‘waiting period’ delaying your access to a gun to defend yourself and your family.”
HR 8 or the “Bipartisan Background Checks Act of 2021” would establish “new background check requirements for firearm transfers between private parties (i.e., unlicensed individuals)”.
It would prohibit “a firearm transfer between private parties unless a licensed gun dealer, manufacturer, or importer first takes possession of the firearm to conduct a background check”.
Despite Ms Greene’s claims, the bill specifically says: “Nothing in this Act, or any amendment made by this Act, shall be construed to authorize the establishment, directly or indirectly, of a national firearms registry.”
HR 1446, also known as the “Enhanced Background Checks Act of 2021,” would revise “background check requirements applicable to proposed firearm transfers from a federal firearms licensee (e.g., a licensed gun dealer) to an unlicensed person”.
“Specifically, it increases the amount of time, from 3 business days to a minimum of 10 business days, that a federal firearms licensee must wait to receive a completed background check prior to transferring a firearm to an unlicensed person,” a summary of the bill states.
The words “waiting period” do not appear in the bill.
Mr Kinzinger responded to Ms Greene’s statement about HR 8, tweeting: “There is absolutely no gun registry or anything like it related to HR8. That is specifically prohibited by law. But the outrage and lie-for-money-train drives full steam ahead.”
In a statement to The Independent, Ms Greene said: “You cannot enforce so-called ‘universal background checks’ without registering every single firearm. The politicians who claim otherwise are intentionally lying to you.”
Ms Greene has become a strong fundraiser, using her status as one of the most controversial members of Congress to rake in the cash. In early February, she raised $325,000 in two days after the House voted to call for her to be stripped of her committee assignments, The Independent reported at the time.
Mr Kinzinger was one of only eight Republicans to vote for expanded background checks for gun purchases on Thursday.
He tweeted: “The vast majority of Americans believe in universal background checks. As a gun owner myself, I firmly support the Second Amendment but I also believe we have to be willing to make some changes for the greater good.”
Mr Kinzinger added in a statement: “Following the shootings in Dayton, Ohio and El Paso, Texas in August 2019, I said publicly that should the HR 8 legislation come before the House again, I would vote in its favour. And today, I did just that.”
Ms Greene famously used guns in her campaign ads, specifically in relation to “the Squad,” prompting House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer to criticise Republicans on the floor of the House for not taking more forceful actions against the Congresswoman in early February. Her inflammatory statements saw her removed from her committee assignments.
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