CHRIS WALLACE, FOX NEWS HOST: Senator Durbin, you and Senator Cornyn, as the whips in the Senate, are the vote counters, the guys who know whether or not there are enough votes. Are there enough votes when this comes up this week for you to pass the Manchin-Toomey compromise on expanded background checks?
SENATOR DURBIN: I think John [Cornyn] will concede Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania is one of the mot conservative members of the Republican caucus and Joe Manchin, the most conservative of the Democratic caucus. The two have a proposal supported by 90% of the people in America, supported by 75% of the members of the National Rifle Association. I hope the 16 Senators and even more wil step up and join this approach to make sure that the background checks extend beyond where they are today to reach the 40% of firearms sold —
WALLACE: Do you have the votes?
DURBIN: We haven’t whipped it. When it gets down to it we have to ask, “Should we try to keep guns out of the hands of felons and people so mentally unstable?” They shouldn’t own a firearm.
WALLACE: Senator Cornyn, do you have the votes to block it?
SENATOR CORNYN: I’m interested in the debate and discussion but I would make the point if Manchin-Toomey were the law of the land today, none of the four of the most recent tragedies would have been prevented…
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