'TERROR' GUN BILL LOCKED & LOADED

DAVID SEIFMAN

A long-stalled bill that would block individuals on the terror watch list from legally buying guns finally has enough support to pass Congress, New Jersey Sen. Frank Lautenberg predicted yesterday.
Joined at Brooklyn Bridge Park by Mayor Bloomberg and other advocates of stricter gun laws, Lautenberg said he was confident of the bill's chances now that the White House, after "years of pressure," has decided to back it.
The bill, sponsored in the House by Rep. Peter King (R-L.I.), gives the Justice Department the power to prevent anyone on the watch list from buying a firearm from a licensed dealer.
Currently, there are nine reasons under federal law that someone can be barred from buying a gun, from serious mental-health problems to a felony conviction.
Chris Cox, a spokesman for the National Rifle Association, said the bill was flawed because it would "arbitrarily deny someone a constitutional right without due process.