Dem Chris Murphy predicts ‘popular revolt’ if SCOTUS blocks gun proposals

Democratic Senator Chris Murphy on Sunday warned of a “popular revolt” in the US if the Supreme Court continues to block gun control measures.

The Connecticut politician sounded the alarm on NBC’s “Meet the Press” days after a federal judge ruled it was unconstitutional to ban gun sales to adults under the age of 21 — a measure the vast majority of Americans support.

Murphy, who was a lead negotiator in last year’s landmark bipartisan safety bill, said judicial action threatened to derail “progress” lawmakers have made in regulating firearms.

Virginia District Court Judge Robert Payne ruled last week a ban on selling guns to 18-to-20-year-old buyers would illegally impose limitations on the Second Amendment that “do not exist with other constitutional guarantees.” The ruling was philosophically in line with a historic 2022 high court decision that overturned New York’s concealed carry restrictions.

“If the Supreme Court eventually says that states or the Congress can’t pass universal background checks or can’t take these assault weapons off the streets, I think there’s going to be a popular revolt over that policy,” he said.

“A court that’s already pretty illegitimate, is going to be in full crisis mode,” Murphy added of the conservative-majority panel.

As mass shootings turn US schools and stores into war zones at an increasingly frenetic pace, Murphy said lawmakers would continue to to “regulate who owns weapons and what kind of weapons are owned,” despite opposition from Second Amendment absolutists.

“We broke a 30 year logjam last year by passing the first major gun safety initiative. You’re seeing Republican states like Tennessee looking at red flag laws, Texas considering raising the age to buy assault weapons. I think our movement is in a position to win,” Murphy told anchor Chuck Todd.

A Fox News poll released last month found that at least 80% of US voters support criminal background checks on gun owners, raising the age of ownership to 21 and allowing police to confiscate guns from the unstable.

With Post wires