Trump says White House discusses firearms legislation; Democrats say that they speak at low level

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that his government has engaged in "constructive" talks with Democrats over gun law after the latest large-scale shootings, but congressional advisers downplayed the issue. discussions, believing that they were unproductive.

Democrats accused Trump of turning the corner after initially expressing support for more thorough background checks after the latest shootings in the US, so "sick people do not get guns".

He also suggested that the National Rifle Association lobby could ease its strong opposition to gun restrictions.

Since then, however, Trump has changed his approach, calling fencers with mental illnesses and saying that the administration should consider building more psychiatric institutions.

"These retreats are heartbreaking, especially for the families of the victims of gun violence," Democratic Senate Leader Chuck Schumer told Twitter. He urged Trump to put pressure on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to allow the Senate to vote on a House of Representatives-backed background bill.

Addressing reporters at the White House, Trump declined to say he endorsed gun laws backed by House Democrats. But he added that the government had initiated discussions with the Democrats.

"We have very constructive discussions with the Democrats and I think the Republicans are very unified," said Trump. He said the Democrats were supporting Republicans less than Republicans and that he wanted to protect himself from too tight control over guns.

"We are looking at different things. And I have to tell you that it's a mental problem, and I said it a hundred times, it's not the weapon that pulls the trigger, it's the person who supports it. These are sick people, "said Trump.

Democrats demanded firearms after shooters took place earlier this month in El Paso, Texas, and in Dayton, Ohio, killing 31 people with semi-automatic rifles using high-volume magazines.

The White House held a staff-level meeting with staff of the Senate Judiciary Committee on Friday, Congressional advisers said.

House Judiciary Committee staff met Tuesday with White House advisers, mainly on the firearms bills that the commission plans to take at a meeting scheduled for Sept. 4. The advisers said there was no productive discussion on legislative priorities or what steps the White House could take. support.

Trump suggested Tuesday that he could accept some changes to improve background checks, but did not give details.

"We have a very, very strong background check right now. But we have somehow missing areas and areas that do not complete the whole circle, "said Trump.

A White House official, who requested anonymity, later said that "significant background checks remain on the table" for the President, but that he "has not mentioned the support for the verification of universal antecedents ".

The official said Trump had spoken on Tuesday to NRA chief Wayne LaPierre. LaPierre said in an article on Twitter that they "were discussing the best ways to prevent these types of tragedies".

The Judiciary Committee of the House announced Friday that it would shorten its summer vacation on September 4 to begin reviewing new gun control legislation.

The group of experts planned to prepare a series of bills to be considered by the whole House, including a ban on high-capacity magazines, a measure to prevent people convicted of crimes disregard for having bought firearms and a bill to ban people deemed to be a danger to themselves and others.

(This story has been added to add the missing word in paragraph 1.)