Politics | Tue Jul 5, 2016 3:36pm EDT

U.S. Republicans push back on Democratic gun-control efforts

WASHINGTON | BY DAVID MORGAN AND SUSAN CORNWELL

U.S. congressional Republican leaders on Tuesday resisted Democratic demands for a vote on gun-control measures and warned that some could face punishment for an unusual sit-in last month that tied up the House of Representatives for 25 hours.

With Democrats already rejecting a Republican gun bill and warning of possible further protests, the House appeared to be heading for renewed discord over gun restrictions in the aftermath of the June 12 mass shooting at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, in which 49 people were gunned down.

Hours before he was due to discuss gun legislation with two Democratic lawmakers who led the sit-in, House Speaker Paul Ryan said he believed their proposals would violate the U.S. Constitution and warned that he would not "incentivize" more disruptive behavior.

"The last thing we are going to do is surrender the floor over to these kinds of tactics when we know it's going to compromise the constitutional rights of law-abiding citizens," Ryan said in an interview with radio station WTMJ in Milwaukee.

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