Lieberman Says Gun Safety Measures Outweighed Legal Immunity for Gun Industry
WASHINGTON - Senator Joe Lieberman, D-Conn., said Tuesday he voted for a bill shielding the gun industry from lawsuits because the life-protecting amendments added to the bill outweighed his opposition to the blanket immunity. The bill, however, failed 8-90. Following is his statement:
"Rarely does the Senate face a bill that is as much of a mixed bag as the final bill we voted on today. The underlying bill - which would grant broad immunity from liability in many lawsuits to gun dealers and manufacturers-was one I opposed. I have great concern for the legal plight of responsible gun manufacturers who face lawsuits that are often frivolous. But this bill dealt with much more than just them, granting immunity to all gun dealers and manufacturers, no matter how they behave. I just couldn't see any justification for giving this, or any, entire industry a "get out of court free" card. Judges, not legislators, should decide court cases.
"In the end, I concluded that the harm done by the immunity bill was outweighed by the good done by several amendments successfully added to it during its consideration in the Senate and I voted in favor of final passage of the bill. The reauthorization of the assault weapons ban, the closing of the gun show loophole and the requirement that guns be sold with trigger locks are truly significant steps towards making our nation and our children safer.
"I am a believer in the Second Amendment and a believer that American citizens have a right to own guns. But with those rights come responsibilities, including the responsibility to ensure that criminals and children don't get guns and that assault weapons aren't sold. None of the amendments passed today will stop law-abiding Americans from enjoying their Second Amendment rights.
"I am especially proud of the Senate's action closing the gun show loophole. For several years, I have worked with Senator McCain to come up with a common sense solution to this critical problem. For ten years now, the Brady law has helped us implement our nation's decades old policy against selling guns to criminals, by requiring gun dealers to check before selling a gun whether the person seeking to buy it is legally permitted to do so. Close to one million illegal gun sales have been stopped by that law. But there is an enormous loophole in that law, and that is that anyone can go to a gun show, find an unlicensed dealer, and buy a gun, with no background check and no questions asked. Criminals, spouse abusers, even terrorists are buying guns that way. The amendment the Senate passed today would have stopped that by requiring background checks for all gun sales at gun shows.
"I am disappointed that the Senate's final action today in defeating the bill will prevent these important, life-protecting amendments from moving forward at this time. But I am hopeful that we will see them move forward through other means in the future."