(Radio Iowa) – A Hollywood actor who is a native of Uvalde, Texas — and a gun owner — made a passionate pitch for gun safety legislation in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday and one of his stops was in Senator Chuck Grassley’s office. “You won’t believe it but the movie star Matthew McConaughey was in my office and he had his wife with us, and she’s as famous as he is,” Grassley says, “and we discussed a lot of things dealing with guns.”

McConaughey’s hometown was the site of the murders of 19 elementary school children and two teachers last month. The actor’s wife, Camila Alves McConaughey, is a Brazilian model and clothing designer. She held the shoes of one of the students who was killed in the Texas school as her husband delivered a speech at the White House. McConaughey says responsible gun owners are fed up with the Second Amendment being abused and hijacked — and support measures like enhanced background checks and raising the age to buy an A-R-15-style rifle from 18 to 21. Grassley says the actor is also familiar with a bill that Grassley’s been promoting.

“He brought up about my Eagles Act and wanted to know how it would work,” Grassley says. “He took a real interest in my saying that Senator Booker was the one senator holding it up. He was going to have a conversation with Senator Booker about it, so maybe that will help get my legislation passed.”

Grassley’s bill would have the Secret Service Threat Assessment Center advise schools on how to recognize the warning signs of student behavior that might turn deadly. Grassley has opposed universal background checks for all gun purchases. And Grassley suggested during a recent town hall meeting that a ban on A-R-15 style rifles would be ineffective since Americans already own 15 million of them.