Ninety-one percent of background checks are completed instantaneously, and they don’t lead to a government database. And they work. I passed my background check and got my gun, and since 1994, more than 2 million folks — among them, criminals and dangerously mentally ill people — failed their background checks. But we don’t know which of those millions just got in their car and drove to a gun show, or home to their computer to go on the Internet — both places where anyone can buy a gun without a background check.

That doesn’t make sense. It’s like saying, hey, criminals, to board the plane, either go through a metal detector and be checked against the terrorist watch list, or, if you prefer, walk right down that red carpet and take a seat, no search necessary. Which would you choose?

That’s why Gabby and I are so determined to get a universal background check in place. It’s simple, it’s not a Republican or a Democratic issue, and it closes a clear loophole that puts our kids and our communities at risk, and it does it in a way that respects the Second Amendment rights of people like me.

More: Mark Kelly: Gun Loophole Makes No Sense