In response to the 2017 Las Vegas shooting , Ernst said " Our prayers are with the lives lost , those injured , and their loved ones in this senseless act of violence in Orlando . " In October 2017 , Ernst was one of ten Republican senators to sign a letter to acting director of the Bureau of Alcohol , Tobacco , Firearms and Explosive ( ATF ) Thomas Brandon requesting that the bureau review an Obama administration decision on bump stocks with the belief " that this renewed review and determination will keep our citizens safe and ensure that federal law is enforced . " Following the Stoneman Douglas High School shooting , Ernst stated that mental illness was the " root cause " for many mass shootings . Ernst also was a cosponsor of the NICS Denial Notification Act , legislation developed in the aftermath of the Stoneman Douglas High School shooting that would require federal authorities to inform states within a day of a prohibited person attempting to buy a firearm failing the National Instant Criminal Background Check System
Stoneman Douglas High School shooting
Stoneman Douglas High School shooting
Joni Ernst