The President of the United States, Joe Biden denounced this Thursday that his country is suffering from an “epidemic” of violence caused by firearms, in a ceremony in which he announced limited measures to try to control a problem that no president has been able to stop so far. The announcement coincided with a new shooting that took place in Texas on Thursday that left one dead and four injured.
The president, who has always called for greater control over gun control, has received pressure from his Democratic Party to act after the recent shootings in Colorado and Georgia, now accompanied by the Texas incident on Thursday.
“This is an epidemic, to shout out loud, and it has to stopDeclared the Democratic president in the White House, also referring to the shootings as a ‘public health crisis’.
Without a likely agreement in Congress to enact a comprehensive reform, for example, to require a buyer background report, Biden announced six decrees to address the problem
Biden presented a limited plan prevent the proliferation of so-called “ghost weapons” – made by hand, sometimes with 3D printers – that are impossible to trace in case of use in a crime.
He also suggested increasing the regulations for armrests designed to stabilize the weapon, a device used by the suspect in the Colorado shooting that killed 10 people.
“Plenty of prayers,” he said of a problem that nearly caused 40,000 deaths per year in the country. “The time for action has come”, assured the president that he called the situation “an international disgrace.”
The president promised to support the agencies involved in the fight against this type of violence and ordered one full report on the problem, a balance that has not been implemented since 2000.
Ban assault rifles
Biden admitted that the gun issue debate is somewhat difficult in the United States, but assured it there is more ground to understanding than you may think.
The president indicated that His proposals are just a starting point, and he called on Congress to enact legislation to enact measures such as background checks and end the sale of assault rifles. which are often the weapon used in mass shootings.
“We should ban assault rifles and high capacity magazines,” he claimed.
The Democrat explains in favor of stricter background checks for firearms purchasers and a ban on military rifles, such as the AR-15.
But both ideas face one strong resistance in Congress, where the small democratic majorities in both houses make it difficult to process initiatives on this sensitive issue in the United States
The AR-15, a semi-automatic weapon similar to the iconic M16 military rifle, has been the weapon of choice in several mass murders. At the same time it is rifle Extremely popular with sport shooters and legal gun enthusiasts, it symbolizes the country’s ideological divisions.
In 1994, as a senator, Biden supported a ban on assault riflesThe law expired a decade later and was never renewed, putting Republicans in tougher positions in light of what they describe as an attack on the constitutional right to bear arms.
Meanwhile, Thursday’s announcements were not well received by Republicans. Alabama lawmaker Robert Aderholt stated that the actions announced by Biden are aimed at “calming the radical left and undermining the right to bear arms as enshrined in the Second Amendment”.
“They want to take your weapons”, added another Republican congressman, Jim Jordan from Ohio.
In addition to the announced measures, Biden took advantage of his speech at the White House Rose Garden to nominate David Chipman, a gun control advocate, as head of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), youa key figure in the fight against gun violence.
Due to the lack of political unity around firearms restrictions, the ATF has not had a Senate-confirmed director since 2015.
With information from AFP
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