A new political battle over gun control is set to erupt in the Senate this week as Democrats and Republicans prepare to introduce a slew of weapon use and ownership amendments, The Washington Post reported.
Gun control has long been a contentious topic on Capitol Hill, surrounded by national outrage towards Congress for being slow to pass swift measures whenever there is a mass shooting.
This time around Republicans are hoping to widen gun ownership liberties, including a measure allowing gun owners to carry weapons into post offices and other federal buildings. Another measure offers more leeway when buying or carrying weapons and ammunition across state lines, according to the Post.
If passed, the measures would be added to the Bipartisan Sportsmen Act, which would pave the way for more shooting ranges at national parks and make hunting and fishing on federal-owned land easier.
On the left side, Democrats are concerned about strengthening national background checks; restrictions on the sale of certain firearms and ammunition; and stronger punishments for purchasing guns for others who intend on committing crimes.
Some Democrats have been itching for another crack at curbing gun use, which they have not had a chance to do since the last major debate in 2013.
"I want this debate," Senator Richard J. Durbin said last Wednesday according to the Post. "I want an opportunity to raise important issues about gun violence and gun safety in America."
But will Congress reach a deal this time? A bipartisan gun-control bill was quashed as a result of the April 2013 debate, a blow to a nation that was recovering from the shooting deaths of 20 children and six adults at Connecticut's Sandy Hook Elementary School four months earlier.
The 2013 measure, which failed to receive enough votes from both parties, addressed wider background checks, a ban on assault weapons and high-capacity gun magazines, all issues Congress is expected to tackle again.
For many Americans, the passing of a bipartisan agreement would mean parents would not have to live through the heartache of losing their kids to gun violence.
That includes Cleopatra Pendleton, whose 15-year-old daughter Hadiya was shot and killed in Chicago on Jan. 29.
"It will take all of us to change our country's deadly direction, because anyone can be the next victim," Cleopatra Pendleton wrote according to the New York Daily News.
