In the wake of the largest and most tragic mass shooting in American history, discussions in the news media have focused mostly on the attacker, Omar Mateen. So far, the motivations for his crimes have been boiled down to rampant homophobia and claimed ties to radical terrorist group ISIS, with the main focus being on the latter and the attack being declared to be terrorist in nature, according both to major news networks and the president himself. There have also been some features on the victims of the shooting that took place on a Latin night in popular gay club Pulse, with the youngest victim being named eighteen years old.

However, one issue that is not being widely addressed, as it is normally hushed up in major shootings, is the issue of the gun laws and Congress’s inability to crack down on them. In recent days, President Obama and Democratic hopeful and presidential presumptive nominee Hillary Clinton have addressed the issue, but there has been little focus on the issue in the larger media stations or by major members of Congress.

Omar Mateen, the gunman in this massacre, was under investigation twice by the FBI, in 2013 and 2014. He was under investigation for ties to terrorist groups and activity, placed on the terror watch list, and then placed on the no-fly list.

When the investigations closed after interviews with Mateen, the FBI concluded they did not have sufficient evidence to arrest him, and closed the investigation, removing him from the list. They were, however, aware, that he had some connections with the Boston bomber and had been reported by co-workers for making inflammatory comments in sympathy with terrorists. The FBI remains confident that they could have done nothing different to prevent Mateen’s rampage.

In response to criticism of the FBI and their investigations of the shooter, the deputy attorney general Sally Q. Yates suggested that new measures should be introduced to alert law enforcement if a person who was at any point under investigation or on the terror watch list is attempting to purchase a firearm.

In reality, even if Mateen had remained on the terror watch list, he would still have the opportunity to purchase the assault rifle he used to kill fifty people.

In December, Republican Congressmen blocked an introduced bill that would have prevented suspected terrorists from purchasing firearms. Only one Democrat voted against the bill, and only one Republican for the bill. The bill was introduced in Congress after the San Bernardino shooting, which cost fourteen lives.

The argument for allowing individuals on the terror watch list to purchase firearms given by the NRA was that they wished to protect those who had been mistakenly placed on the list, and were in fact innocent, from having their second amendment taken away. Realistically, this could be said for Mateen; he was placed on the list but found to have not committed a crime, and was then taken off the list. He was by all accounts, “innocent” of his crimes. And yet, he killed fifty members of the LGBT community when exercising his second amendment right to purchase a semiautomatic weapon.

By current regulations, those found to have abused drugs in the past may not purchase guns, but suspected terrorists may. According to the Washington Post, over 2,000 suspected terrorists have legally purchased firearms in the ten years between 2004 and 2014.

The fact that so many Congressmen have come forward to express sympathy for the Orlando victims but have made no attempts to tighten gun laws was brought to attention by Representative Jim Himes. The Senate held a moment of silence in their proceedings to honor the Orlando victims, and the House was expected to follow suit in their meeting. Himes claims he will boycott this moment of silence, claiming it mocks victims rather than honors them. According to Himes, “Congress has been complicit in these murders by its total, unconscionable deafening silence.”

The claim that Congress has done nothing to support victims and prevent future shootings is not without evidence. Several members of Congress have been reported to accept funding from the NRA, and have then voted in their favor on gun laws such as the one proposed in December. Some of those members include Ted Cruz, Thom Tillis, Paul Ryan, and John Boozman, among many others.