Senate nears gun debate, background checks pivotal

WASHINGTON: Congress returns Monday from a two-week spring recess with gun control and immigration high on the Senate’s agenda.
Senators could start debating Democratic-written gun legislation before week’s end. But leaders also might decide to give negotiators more time to seek a deal on expanding background checks for firearms buyers.
The expanded background checks would be viewed as a victory for gun control advocates after Democratic leaders made it clear that supporters were nowhere close to getting a majority of votes in favor of reinstituting an assault weapons ban.
Both measures have been a priority for President Barack Obama since the December killings of students and staff at an elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut.
The National Rifle Association, a gun rights lobbying group, opposes both the assault weapons ban and the expanded background checks.