Tag: Marlon Kimpson

Shattering the assumption that America’s gun control debate is doomed to political deadlock, a new poll has found an overwhelming majority of South Carolinians — both Republicans and Democrats — support legislation that would require background checks for gun purchases, even if it takes longer than three days. A Winthrop University poll of 1,007 South Carolina residents found 80 percent of respondents said they would be in favor of closing the so-called “Charleston loophole” that allowed a self-avowed white supremacist to purchase the gun used in the 2015 Emanuel AME Church murders. The poll results released early Thursday found 80 percent of Republicans surveyed said they would support the expanded background check effort, compared to the 83 percent of Democrats polled. “Where the division is, is with the party elites like elected officials and campaign leaders. One of them was the Enhanced Background Checks Act, which seeks to extend the length of FBI background checks for gun purchases from three days to 10. Majority Whip Rep. Jim Clyburn, D-Columbia, was the bill’s primary sponsor. Since the bill’s passage in the House, both Clyburn and Cunningham have publicly urged their colleagues in the Republican-controlled U.S. Senate to take up the bill by holding press conferences and penning op-eds. Huffmon said there’s a real political fear, especially among Republicans, to alienate potential voters on the issue of guns. Nobody is marching with signs saying don’t close the Charleston loophole.” Each year, Kimpson said he has seen slow but steady progress on getting his bill closer to passage. In October 2015, a Winthrop poll found 80 percent of South Carolinians supported requiring a completed background check for a gun purchase.