On Sunday, the two senators at the helm of the push for stronger gun laws appeared together on CNN’s State Of The Union, where they gave an impassioned call for action on gun laws and brushed off the idea that it was a political risk to focus on gun legislation.

Sens. Pat Toomey (R-PA) and Joe Manchin (D-WV) have proposed a law that would tighten the regulations on firearm sales, requiring that every sale except for private transactions include a criminal background check. While that’s popular among 92 percent of Americans, the National Rifle Association has warned that it’s politically poisonous.

But when host Candy Crowley pointed out the political risks of focusing on gun legislation, citing a Saturday Night Live sketch on the topic, both Manchin and Toomey dismissed the risk, saying that’s not why they are in office:

CROWLEY: Are either one of you worried about any kind of challenge, primary or general?

MANCHIN: Let me just say I know Pat and I have talked, we came here to do something. We came here to make a difference. If you would have met with the families, the strongest people I’ve ever met with, the families of the Newtown victims, they never asked for anybody to take their guns away. They never asked to repeal the second amendment. They said, ‘we’re gun owners and we respect and honor all that.’ We know, and they’ll even say, we know that this bill that you’re working on would not have saved our children. We know that. But it might save somebody else’s child somebody. I mean, if we just had half the courage [the Newtown families] had, Candy, just half the courage. So, yes, I came to do something and I want to do something.

TOOMEY: In 1999 I supported expanding background checks. I just think it makes common sense. And I’ll just let the political chips fall the way they fall.

Watch it:

The Toomey-Manchin proposal made it past an initial filibuster last week, garnering 68 votes (including 16 Republicans) for moving to debate. But not everything that will be included in the bill is yet known, and Senators — particularly Republicans — have been tentative in offering their support for the legislation.

Local newspapers in the gun-friendly states of West Virginia and Pennsylvania are embracing the compromise to expand background checks offered by Sens. Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Pat Toomey (R-PA), describing the amendment as a “common sense” proposal and a “middle ground” that can help advance the gun debate.

Gun & Ammo magazine reports that 55 percent of West Virginians and 34.7 percent of Pennsylvanians are gun owners and ranks the states as the 21st and 20th “best states for guns,” respectively. Both Manchin and Toomey received an A-rating from the National Rifle Association.

Under their measure, individuals who buy firearms at gun shows or online would have to undergo a background check that would be recorded with a federal firearm licensed dealer. Personal transfers would be exempt.

“A Pennsylvania lawmaker has done something that’s hard to find these days in Washington — he compromised,” read the lede for Lancaster’s Intelligencer Journal. “Proposal may make Toomey a political giant,” roared Harrisburg’s The Patriot-News. West Virginia press was similarly complimentary of Manchin, praising the freshman senator for brokering the deal and for recognizing that “Newtown changed us all.” Here is a sampling of the headlines:

On Wednesday, President Obama unveiled a comprehensive plan to reform American gun laws and take action against the 32,000 firearm-inflicted deaths per year in the United States. His proposals ranged from stricter, universal background checks to more funding for police officers to expanding access to mental health care.

Yet a group of Senate Democrats, all of them highly rated by the National Rifle Association, are refusing to say if they support the President’s reform package. Below is a list of the Senators in question, how they’re rated by the NRA, and what they’ve said about gun law reform:

1. Max Baucus, Montana (NRA Rating: A+). Baucus appeared to oppose any federal action on gun law reform, saying in a statement that “Before passing new laws, we need a thoughtful debate that respects responsible, law-abiding gun owners in Montana instead of a one-size-fits all directives from Washington.”

2. Heidi Heitkamp, North Dakota (NRA Rating: A). In a local television appearance before President Obama’s announcement, Heitkamp accused the White House of having ulterior motives besides preventing mass killing, claiming “There isn’t any amount of gun regulation or gun executive orders that will solve the problem of identifying people who could potentially do this and making sure they get the help and their families get the help so they don’ t do this. I’ve said it all along that this is wrong headed…I think it is an agenda driven by something other than school shootings.”

3. Tim Johnson, South Dakota (NRA Rating: A). Like Baucus, Johnson argued against federal solutions: “We in South Dakota have far fewer problems with guns than they do in New York or New Jersey and it makes common sense to not have one size fits all.”

4. Joe Donnelly, Indiana (NRA Rating: A). Donnelly simply said that “I am a strong supporter of the Second Amendment,” pointed to his NRA endorsement, and rejected the assault weapons ban plan of Obama’s proposal.

5. Mark Begich, Alaska (NRA Rating: A). Begich cited his support for mental health legislation, but demurred on gun restrictions, saying “there is no quick fix when it comes to keeping our families and communities safe. We must make smart investments to increase our safety while ensuring Americans’ Second Amendment rights are protected.”

6. Joe Manchin, West Virginia (NRA Rating: A). Manchin blamed a “culture of mass violence” rather than the spread of deadly weapons, wishing the president had created a “national commission [to] build the consensus we need for real action backed not only by gun control advocates, mental health experts and entertainment industry executives but also by law-abiding gun owners who fully understand the history and heritage of firearms in America.”

7. Jon Tester, Montana (NRA Rating: A-). Tester refused to take a position, saying “As Congress considers ways to address gun violence, we must look at all aspects of this issue. Our priority must be keeping all Americans–especially our kids–safe. I will look closely at all proposals on the table, but we must use common sense and respect our Constitution.”

8. Harry Reid, Nevada (NRA Rating: B). Reid, like Tester, wouldn’t say one way or another: “I thank the President’s task force for its thoughtful recommendations. I am committed to ensuring that the Senate will consider legislation that addresses gun violence and other aspects of violence in our society early this year. The tragedy at Sandy Hook was just the latest sad reminder that we are not doing enough to protect our citizens – especially our children – from gun violence and a culture of violence, and all options should be on the table moving forward.”

Fortunately, however, several Democratic Senators with high ratings have realized the gun lobby’s power is vastly overstated. Mark Warner of Virginia, who has a flat A rating, said several of the Obama proposals had “bipartisan support” and that “President Obama has laid out a comprehensive, far-reaching proposal to address the issues of gun violence and public safety. The Sandy Hook shootings compel all of us to think anew about these issues, and I believe the status quo is not acceptable.” Bob Casey (PA) and Martin Heinrich (NM), who are rated B+, supported some of the strong gun regulations in the Obama package.

Lifelong NRA member and hunting aficionado Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) spoke out in support of tighter gun safety laws after the tragic shooting at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, CT. Manchin appeared on CNBC Monday morning to expand on his change of heart and explain why hunters should not fear a ban on assault weapons or high-capacity clips:

I’ve been a hunter all my life. The culture in West Virginia is hunting and sporting and we love it, it’s part of who we are. But we’re taught at a very young age how to do it responsibly and respect the weapons and learn to use them safely for the purpose of hunting and sporting. With that being said, I’ve never been hunting with anyone with an assault weapon. I’ve never been hunting with anyone with multiple clips of ten, fifteen, thirty rounds in it. In deer hunting we maybe have 3 shells in our gun, and that’s the sport of what we do. I just think that when you have my friend Chuck Schumer basically saying that we should look at these larger clips, those are something we should be talking about. And when you have Joe Lieberman, just the most decent human being, saying listen, this is bigger, it’s about mental illness, it’s about keeping our children safe in our schools. [...] We’ve had horrific crimes throughout our country but never have we seen so many of our babies put in harm’s ways and their life taken from them. That’s changed me and it’s changed most Americans, I think.

Watch it:

The NRA has maintained its silence on the elementary school massacre, avoiding the Sunday talk shows and deleting its Facebook page. Still, some of their strongest supporters are reconsidering their stance on gun rights. Besides Manchin, MSNBC host Joe Scarborough also called for reform Monday despite his dedication to gun rights and the NRA as a congressman. Manchin’s colleagues, including Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) have prepared legislation to ban assault weapons and high-capacity clips for the 113th Congress to take up at the beginning of 2013.