Biden appeals for tougher gun laws
WASHINGTON — President Biden delivered an impassioned plea to Congress to take action against gun violence in an address to the nation Thursday night, calling on lawmakers to restore a ban on the sale of assaultstyle weapons and highcapacity magazines after a string of mass shootings. If legislators fail to act, he warned, voters should use their “outrage” to turn gun violence into a central issue in November’s midterm elections.
Speaking at the White House, Biden acknowledged the stiff political headwinds as he sought to drive up pressure on Congress to pass stricter gun limits after such efforts failed following past attacks. He said if Congress won’t embrace all of his proposals, they must at least find compromise on other measures, like limiting access to firearms to those with mental health issues or raising the age to buy assault-style weapons from 18 to 21.
“How much more carnage are we willing to accept,” Biden said after last week’s shootings by an 18-year-old gunman, who killed 19 students and two teachers at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, and another attack on Wednesday in Tulsa, Okla., where a gunman shot and killed four people and himself at a medical office.
And those came after the May 14 assault in Buffalo, N.Y., where a white 18-year-old wearing military gear and live-streaming with a helmet camera opened fire with a rifle at a supermarket in a predominantly Black neighborhood, killing 10 people and wounding three others in what authorities described as “racially motivated violent extremism.”
“This time we have to take the time to do something,” Biden said, calling out the Senate, where 10 Republican votes would be needed to pass legislation.
“I know how hard it is, but I’ll never give up and if Congress fails, I believe this time a majority of the American people won’t give up, either,” he added. “I believe the majority of you will act to turn your outrage into making this issue central to your vote.”
His Thursday night address coincided with bipartisan talks that are intensifying among a core group of senators discussing modest gun policy changes.