U.S. Senate approves first major gun legislation since 1994, one month after Uvalde shooting

U.S. Sen. John Cornyn offers remarks at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Nov. 2, 2021. On Thursday, the bipartisan gun bill he negotiated passed the Senate. (Credit: REUTERS/Rod Lamkey - CNP/Sipa USA)

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. John Cornyn succeeded Thursday in passing landmark gun legislation in the Senate, an achievement that comes just weeks after 19 children and two teachers were murdered in a school shooting in Uvalde.

Known as the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, Cornyn expended two decades of political capital toward moving the bill, in what was an almost unthinkable move for a Republican representing a state that often proudly touts that it has the most firearms and some of the loosest gun restrictions.