Washington: US President Joe Biden on Saturday reiterated that the US Congress needs to ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines.
The remarks followed the unending gun violence culture prevailing in America.
Taking to his official Twitter handle, Biden said, “Congress needs to Ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, Strengthen background, checks, enact safe storage laws and red flag laws and repeal gun manufacturers’ immunity from liability.
“We can’t fail the American people again,” he added.
On June 2, while urging the Congress to put a ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, Biden had said that guns are the number one killer of children in the US, more than cars and cancer.
“According to new data just released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, guns are the number one killer of children in the United States. The number one killer. More than car accidents. More than cancer,” the President had said, while speaking from the White House on June 2.
He said that more school-aged children were killed from guns than on-duty police officers and active-duty military combined.
“For God’s sake, how much more carnage are we willing to accept? How many more innocent American lives must be taken before we say ‘enough’? Enough,” added the US President.
He said the issue people face is one of conscience and common sense.
“This is not about taking away anyone’s guns. It’s not about vilifying gun owners. In fact, we believe we should be treating responsible gun owners as an example of how every gun owner should behave,” he added.
As per Biden, “This isn’t about taking away anyone’s rights. It’s about protecting children. It’s about protecting families. It’s about protecting whole communities. It’s about protecting our freedoms to go to school, to a grocery store, and to a church without being shot and killed.
“We need to ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. And if we can’t ban assault weapons, then we should raise the age to purchase them from 18 to 21. Strengthen background checks. Enact safe storage laws and red-flag laws.
“Repeal the immunity that protects gun manufacturers from liability. Address the mental health crisis deepening the trauma of gun violence and as a consequence of that violence,” Biden said.
On Wednesday, the House voted 223-204 to pass a wide-ranging package of gun control legislation called the “Protecting Our Kids Act”.
According to CNN, the measure would raise the legal age to buy certain semi-automatic centerfire rifles from 18 to 21 years, establish new federal offences for gun trafficking and for selling large-capacity magazines, and allowing local governments to compensate individuals, who surrender such magazines through a buyback programme.
The US has witnessed a spate of mass shootings in New York, Buffalo, Tulsa, Oklahoma and Texas. In Uvalde, 19 school children and two adults were killed.
