Lawmakers want to pass legislation aimed at the Second Amendment after three mass shootings in 17 days have left 35 people dead.
Thursday night, President Biden issued a call to a divided Congress, asking legislators to pass more gun laws. The CDC says gun violence is now the number one killer of children in the United States.
“Over the last two decades, more school-aged children have died from guns than on-duty police officers and active-duty military combined,” said President Biden.
Depending on which source you reference, the United States has seen more mass shootings than the number of days so far this year. Gun violence is being called an epidemic.
“The question now is, what will Congress do?” asked Biden. He presented several goals, including a ban on assault rifles and high-capacity magazines, strengthening background checks and red-flag laws to keep guns out of the hands of mentally disturbed people, implementing safe storage laws, and repealing immunity that protects gun manufacturers.
While Democrats support the president’s call for new gun laws, Republicans charge that restricting guns won’t stop the violence.
Biden’s political request comes after the latest horrific wave of mass shootings. In New York, a gunman targeted and killed 10 black people in a grocery store; 4 were murdered in Tulsa when a disgruntled patient came after his surgeon at a medical facility; and 21 were killed in Texas, including 19 school children when a gunman attacked an elementary school.
“Imagine being that brave girl in Uvalde, who smeared blood from her murdered friend and pretended she was dead in order for her to stay alive,” said Biden.
House Democrats launched a bill Thursday called the Protecting Our Kids Act. It would raise the age to buy an assault rifle to 21, restrict high-capacity magazines, ban ghost guns or guns made at home, and seek new penalties for gun trafficking. Some say it’s not enough.
“This bill will not alone save every life we will lose to gun violence this year, but it will save some,” said Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY). “It might’ve saved those children in Uvalde, and whoever saves one life, it’s as if he’s saved the entire world. The American people are begging for us to address this crisis.”
Senate Republicans say their proposed solutions go beyond limiting access to guns.
“Anybody with any heartbeat is horrified that 19 little boys and girls were murdered, and two teachers murdered,” said Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX). “And what do Joe Biden and the Democrats do? They don’t come back and say let’s unite behind law enforcement to keep our kids safe. Nope, they immediately demagogue and say the solution is to take away your weapons and to disarm law-abiding citizens.”
However, there is a bipartisan group of senators working together with a focus on red flag laws, background checks, and school safety. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) expects to have something to present next week.
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