A bipartisan coalition of lawmakers is mobilizing to push for renewal of the Violence Against Women Act, a measure that has been blocked for years due to Republican concerns that men who are arrested for beating their wives and children won’t be able to purchase semi-automatic rifles. The action follows on the House passage of the bill in March of 2021.
The effort to renew VAWA is expected to see strong pushback from far right conservatives in the GOP, who typically act as a “pro domestic violence” lobbying group.
When the bill was passed in March, Republicans were opposed to closure of the “boyfriend loophole”, a provision that allows men to purchase firearms even if they’ve been convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence. Supporters of VAWA renewal claim that closing the loophole is necessary, as many District Attorneys will allow a first time offender, especially one who is white and lives in a rural or suburban area to plea down from felony to misdemeanor domestic violence charges as part of a plea deal. Republicans on the other hand are beholden to the NRA, which is financed by the gun lobby, and feel that sacrificing the lives of thousands of women per year to domestic violence shootings is an acceptable loss, so long as they are able to keep receiving campaign contributions from the gun lobby.