McConaughey: Gun safety legislation isn’t perfect but ‘shining example’ of compromise

Actor Matthew McConaughey said new gun safety legislation passed by Congress last week isn’t perfect but is a “shining example” of compromise in the country. 

In an op-ed published by the Austin American-Statesman on Sunday, McConaughey wrote that the gun safety legislation would save “innocent lives” and keep firearms away from those considered dangerous, calling the bill an “investment” in the country’s future. 

“This bill is a responsible investment in the future of our country and in America’s greatest asset, our children,” McConaughey said.

“This bill makes those whose lives have been needlessly cut short by gun violence matter,” he added. “This bill is about more responsible gun ownership in America.”

The 52-year-old actor also wrote that the recent mass shooting in his hometown of Uvalde, Texas, led to “responsible actions” from both parties and showed that a bipartisan effort can result in effective change in the U.S.

“While this bill isn’t perfect, it is a shining example of a great American potential and political virtue: the act of compromise and validating an opposing viewpoint,” McConaughey wrote in his op-ed. 

“This is a quintessential virtue of America, where two seemingly contradictory approaches to the same problem can be true at the same time, AND, when combined, actually reveal a more useful and powerful solution than either on its own,” he added.  

President Biden signed the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act on Saturday, marking the first legislation to address gun violence in nearly 30 years. 

A bipartisan group of senators drafted the legislation in response to the recent string of mass shootings in Uvalde and Buffalo, N.Y. McConaughey met with lawmakers and spoke at a White House press briefing on the matter.

The bill will include funding for school safety resources, expanded background checks for buyers under the age of 21, penalties for straw purchases of firearms, and new protections for domestic violence victims. 

“Today, we say more than enough. We said more than enough. It’s time when it seems impossible to get anything done in Washington, we are doing some consequential,” Biden said at the ceremony of the bill signing, noting that more work has to be done to address the gun violence issue. “I know there’s much more work to do. I’m never going to give up.”