Opponents Of Gun Control Speak In Oklahoma As National Debate Continues

The debate over gun control is at the forefront of a U.S. Senate Committee. They approved a Democratic bill that would expand federal background checks for nearly all gun purchases.

And Oklahoma lawmakers are currently looking at a few bills that will curb gun control.

One is the Firearms Freedom Act.

"This would criminalize any federal effort to override to arrest somebody for selling an unlicensed gun that was made in Oklahoma," said Gun Owners of America Executive Director Larry Pratt.

3/6/2013 Related Story: Oklahoma Ammunition Maker Supports Firearms Freedom Act

Pratt is in Oklahoma talking to legislators about the importance of fighting for our Second Amendment rights.

"The Second Amendment says ‘shall not be infringed' and gun control infringes," Pratt said.

Congressmen are pushing to have stricter federal background checks for nearly all gun purchases and toughen laws on gun trafficking.

"The instant background check doesn't help fight crime," Pratt said. "Studies have not shown that there was any benefit from it, and yet you would have a universal registration list of gun owners."

"The bill explicitly says there is no registration, explicitly says no confiscation," said Senator Chuck Schumer (D-New York).

A group of cyclists from Newtown took a nearly 400-mile ride to the Capitol to talk to Congress. Among the group were two Sandy Hook parents.

"We struck a chord with America, because most Americans want to cure our gun violence epidemic," said cyclist Monte Frank.

According to a Mayors Against Illegal Guns study, there have been 43 mass shootings in the U.S. since January 2009. The study says 14 of those shootings took place in a gun-free zone.

Pratt argues the answer to ending the violence is to eliminate those zones.

"Make it so a teacher or a principal is able to shoot back, and you have a response maybe in 20 seconds, instead of 20 minutes, which was the case in Newtown," Pratt said.

Pratt will speak at a local grassroots event Wednesday at 11:30 a.m. at the Stokely Event Center in Tulsa.

The U.S. Senate committee will vote on a proposal to ban assault weapons on Thursday.