US Senators

The measures would include support for tougher background checks for buyers under the age of 21 and cracking down on illegal gun purchases.

Crucially, the proposals are supported by 10 Republicans, meaning they have the numbers to be voted into law.

President Biden said the plans were "steps in the right direction" but they fall far short of what he called for.

Tens of thousands of protesters rallied across the US on Saturday to call for stricter gun laws in the wake of two mass shootings.

The 11 senators and senators-elect, led by Ted Cruz, want a 10-day delay to audit the unsubstantiated allegations.

The move is not expected to succeed as most senators are expected to endorse Mr Biden in the 6 January vote.

President Donald Trump has refused to concede, repeatedly alleging fraud without providing any evidence.

His legal efforts to overturn results have been overwhelmingly rejected by the courts. He has only one minor win, concerning a small number of postal ballots in Pennsylvania, one of the states Mr Biden won in last year's race.

At present, the companies cannot be sued over what their users post online, or the decisions they make over what to leave up and take down.

Some politicians have raised concerns this "sweeping immunity" encourages bad behaviour.

But the chief executives say they need the law to be able to moderate content.

Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg, Twitter's Jack Dorsey and Google's Sundar Pichai were summoned before the Senate after both Democrats and Republicans agreed to call them in for questioning.

'A loophole'