The Vote From Sen. Murphy's Filibuster Is Coming

Connecticut Sen. Chris Murphy famously held a nearly 15-hour-long filibuster on the floor of the Senate, beginning last Wednesday morning and continuing until just after 2 a.m. last Thursday. Calling for legislative action against gun violence after the mass shooting in Orlando on Sunday, the Democratic senator refused to cede the floor until Senate leaders agreed to hold a vote on gun control legislation proposed by Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California. In the end, the filibuster was successful, and Republicans agreed to vote on gun control legislation surprisingly soon. In fact, on Thursday morning (after only two hours of sleep) Sen. Murphy told CNN that he expected the votes on the gun control legislation to take place within the next week.

It's unclear (if not unlikely) if Sen. Feinstein's gun control legislation — which would ban suspected terrorists from purchasing guns — will pass the Republican-controlled Senate. However, without Sen. Murphy's filibuster, the Senate would not have even discussed gun violence this week — which is rather appalling since the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history took place in Orlando last weekend.

According to NBC News, Sen. Feinstein first proposed her gun control legislation in December 2015, just after the mass shooting in San Bernardino, California, that left 14 people dead — the proposal was immediately rejected by Senate Republicans.

After Orlando, it's no wonder Sen. Murphy did not want to allow Senate Republicans to keep the Senate from even voting on a bill that would help curtail gun violence in America — hence his determination to filibuster.

Sen. Feinstein proposed her amendment to regulate gun sales after the San Bernardino shooting took place in her state of California; however, Sen. Murphy also understands what it's like to be a senator in a state where a mass shooting has taken place: the Connecticut senator took office less than a month after 26 people (20 of them children) died in the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School.

It would have been hard to believe if Senate leaders had refused to consider gun control legislation after hearing Sen. Murphy's filibuster speech. The senator spoke multiple times about the 20 children who died in the Sandy Hook shooting, and ended the filibuster by sharing details of Dylan Hockley's short life — the six-year-old was killed at Sandy Hook. NBC News reported that Sen. Murphy left the Senate floor on Wednesday night saying:

I have been furious since those days following Sandy Hook. I have been so angry that this Congress has mustered absolutely no response to mass shooting after mass shooting, in city after city that is plagued by gun violence.

How could anyone could disagree with Sen. Murphy's pleas for gun control legislation?

Last weekend, America woke up to the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history — it would only make sense for the Senate to vote on gun control legislation this week, and thanks to Sen. Murphy that's going to happen. But it's disheartening to think that Sen. Murphy had to hold a filibuster in order to convince the Senate to consider gun control legislation.

However, Americans should be thankful that the Connecticut senator did what he had to do in order to move the discussion of gun control in the U.S. forward. Hopefully Sen. Feinstein's bill passes, but even if it does not, at least Sen. Murphy has made it impossible for the Senate to continue ignoring the need for gun control legislation in America.