Orlando shooting: US Senate Rejects Tighter Gun Control

The Republican-controlled US Senate rejected four competing gun control measures just days after the Orlando nightclub massacre, highlighting the feuding over an issue set to resonate during a heated presidential election year.

With a month to go before Republicans and Democrats formally nominate their White House hopefuls, lawmakers failed on Monday to compromise on one of the most sensitive hot-button issues in America.

Even as they sought to appear keen to take action after the deadliest mass shooting in US history that left 49 dead at a gay nightclub in Orlando a week ago, Republicans and Democrats voted down four amendments – two from each party – that would have limited some gun purchases, including those by suspects on FBI watchlists.

“The recent attacks in Orlando – as much as people are concerned and upset about them – are not going to force members of Congress to fundamentally vote against their own self-interest,” Jason Johnson, political science professor at Hiram College, told Al Jazeera.