Will gun-sale loophole turn into a chasm?

The Arizona Legislature has approved a bill that would remove any and all possible roadblocks to the purchase of firearms … by criminals, domestic abusers, individuals with serious mental illness and, of course, terrorists. Yes. Really. Senate Bill 1122, approved by both the Senate and the House, prohibits any state or local government to require the search of a federal or state database before “personal property” is sold, given away or transferred.

The word “gun” or “firearm” doesn’t appear in the legislation, but that’s what this is all about.

Essentially, lawmakers want to prohibit charter cities like Tucson from enacting and enforcing ordinances that require background checks on guns sales. Tucson has had such a law since 2001 and it has held up in court.

A law like this is meant to supersede the authority of charter cities.

Something like 90 percent of us, including most gun owners, favor universal background checks on firearms sales.

Does it add a bit of a hassle to the process? Yes. But we’re not talking about selling your old dining room set or the bicycle your kid has outgrown. We’re talking about firearms.

During the debate on the bill, Rep. Anthony Kern said, “If I want to sell … any of my personal property, including weapons, I should be able to do that. It is up to me as a responsible seller to make sure I know who the buyer is. It’s called America and it’s called the Second Amendment.”

Yeah, because criminals never lie when trying to get you to sell them a gun, right? Background checks work. The National Rifle Association doesn’t like the idea of a simple background check, however because … well, no good reason.

But the Republicans who control the Arizona Legislature are more interested in keeping gun lobbyists happy than in keeping you safe.

Emily Nottingham, a member of the Everytown Survivor Network, whose son Gabe Zimmerman was killed in the 2011 mass shooting that wounded then Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, issued a statement that reads in part:

“I’m extremely disappointed … SB 1122 is unnecessary legislation that would make it more difficult to keep guns out of the hands of convicted criminals and domestic abusers. This gun lobby-backed bill threatens the ability to make our communities safer. As an Arizonan and a gun violence survivor, I urge Gov. Ducey to veto SB 1122.”

So far this session, Arizona’s Republican-controlled Legislature has offered free public money to wealthy families looking to send their kids to private schools. Middle-class parents, on the other hand, got short-changed. So, too, have the disabled. As have firefighters looking for insurance coverage for certain forms of work-related cancers and heart disease.

Will gun-violence survivors be next?