Mass. Senators Join Democrats' Gun Filibuster

By Rich Scinto, Patch staff

Massachusetts Senators Ed Markey and Elizabeth Warren are joining fellow Democrats in an impassioned stand to introduce gun control legislation, motivated by a deadly attack Sunday in Orlando that killed 49, including two with ties to Massachusetts.

U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) said Wednesday he will remain on the senate floor until the body addresses the issue of gun violence.

• Patch is live-blogging Murphy's filibuster here
• Watch live feed from CSPAN

He will stay, he said, "until we get some signal, some sign that we can come together on these two measures, that we can get a path forward on addressing this epidemic in a meaningful bipartisan way."

That was hours ago.

He has since been joined on the floor by numerous fellow Democrats, including Markey...

Headed to #Senate floor to join @ChrisMurphyCT & @SenateDems. #Enough is enough. We need action to #StopGunViolence https://t.co/xJu558XNRl
— Ed Markey (@SenMarkey) June 15, 2016

... and, later, Warren.

“Three years ago the people of Boston came face to face with terror…This week two people with MA roots were killed in Orlando” - Eliz Warren
— Matt Viser (@mviser) June 15, 2016

Democrats are filibustering a yearly funding bill for the departments of Commerce, Justice, NSF and other agencies, according to Gov Track. The party is pushing for debate adding gun control amendments to a spending bill that is currently working its way through the Senate Wednesday, following the weekend’s mass shooting at a gay nightclub in Orlando.

The Democrats are calling for two primary legislative measures: universal background checks, or closing the “gun show loophole,” and the prevention of suspected terrorists from buying firearms.

>> Alison Bauter, Patch staff, contributed to this story

>> Patch updated this story at 4:03 p.m.

>> Photo by Navajo Nation Washington Office via Flickr/Creative Commons