The Supreme Court's ruling Thursday expanding gun rights is throwing a curveball into debate over anti-gun violence efforts as lawmakers scramble to pass legislation.
The Senate has teed up a vote on a bipartisan gun-safety bill for Friday, and the high court's ruling is fueling a sense of urgency among Democrats to quickly pass the bill.
Democrats have touted new funds for red flag laws and prohibiting guns for five years from dating partners accused of domestic violence as the bill's biggest achievements.
But as The Hill's John Kruzel reports, the court's latest ruling raises questions about whether it could hamper efforts to pass modern gun-safety measures.
Adam Winkler, a professor at the UCLA School of Law, said a gun law must be consistent with historical patterns of gun regulation to be constitutionally permissible.
"There is no historical tradition of taking guns away from people who are in crisis," Winkler told Kruzel.
Gun control activists have brushed off such concerns, as our colleague Zach Schonfeld reported, even as they condemned the court's ruling Thursday.
"I believe what the Senate is considering and hopefully will be passing today is clearly constitutional," said Jonathan Lowy, chief counsel at the Brady Campaign.
Shannon Watts, founder of pro-gun control group Moms Demand Action, tweeted that the ruling "doesn't touch the policy areas" of the bill.
The 6-3 ruling, which fell along ideological lines, struck down a century-old New York state law that made it more difficult to obtain a permit to carry a handgun in public.
And while the court's decision in part overshadows the Senate's effort advancing the bipartisan gun bill, it's also energized Democrats to push for more action.
"Democrats will never relent in our fight to end the scourge of gun violence," Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said, vowing the House will continue to push for a ban on assault-style weapons and other measures the Senate excluded from its bill.
Republicans who opposed the bill have also cited the ruling to justify their positions. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) said in a statement that it was an "ever-present reminder" of the "brazen attacks from the left" on the Second Amendment.
John LaBombard, former communications director to Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.), said Democrats should emphasize the rare achievement of bipartisanship in today's Congress.
"They have set an example for how Washington can work when leaders tune out partisan purists in both parties and do the hard work of forging common ground around common values," LaBombard said.
"That's what everyday voters across the country want, and it's an achievement that even today's court decision can't undermine," he added.
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