JUST IN: Romney Breaks With Senate Republicans, Says He Supports Raising Age for Buying Assault Weapons to 21

Utah Republican Senator Mitt Romney said he supports raising the minimum age for buying assault weapons from 18 to 21 in an email to CNN.

As the United States continues to discuss gun reform in response to the nation’s recent series of mass shootings, one of the most recurring proposals has been whether to raise the age limit for when people are legally allowed to own AR-15s and similar weapons.

CNN’s Ana Cabrera was discussing the Democratic push for gun safety with Manu Raju when she reported that the network received an email from Romney’s office, and “he’s in favor of shifting the age to buy assault style weapons from 18 to 21.”

Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) — who is spearheading the current Democratic effort for gun control in Congress — recently expressed hope that he’ll be able to get at least 10 Republicans to support his gun safety plans. Despite Romney’s notice, however, Raju told Cabrera that raising the age limit has “not been part of talks” in the Senate, and despite the openness displayed by Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, “there is just simply not enough Republican support” for it.

While a gun safety bill has yet to be fully formulated in the Senate, a small number of House Republicans have expressed support for raising the minimum age for legal assault rifle ownership. The Protecting Our Kids Act passed in the House with a 228-199 vote, and while most of the vote went down party lines, it received support from Republican Representatives Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), Anthony Gonzalez (R-OH), Chris Jacobs (R-NY), John Katko (R-NY), Adam Kinzinger (R-IL), Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY), Maria Salazar (R-FL), Chris Smith (R-NJ), Michael Turner (R-OH), and Fred Upton (R-MI).

Watch above, via CNN.