President Barack Obama was in Minneapolis, MN. seeking to rally support from the public as well as the law enforcement community for his calls to ban assault weapons and install universal background checks for all gun buyers. Obama’s trip to Minnesota today Feb. 4, 2013, was the first time he has campaigned on his gun control proposals outside of Washington.
During Obama’s speech he said, “We don’t have to agree on everything, to agree on something” to help curb gun violence, and that “real and lasting change requires congress to act”, which is the real problem.
“We may not be able to prevent every massacre or random shooting. No law or set of laws can keep our children completely safe. But if there’s even one thing we can do, if there’s just one life we can save, we’ve got an obligation to try.”
Polls show that 85 percent of Americans support universal background checks, and 74 percent of NRA members also support universal background checks.
There is overwhelming support from American citizens for universal background checks, which should make those in congress feel safe in supporting universal background checks.
But no, the NRA is lobbying against it, so that means regardless of what the American people want, you can’t have it. Congress no longer seems to care what the American people want, they only look to act on the agendas that their special interest groups want, who happen to donate millions to their reelection campaigns.
National Rifle Association executive Wayne LaPierre at recent congressional hearings said, “None of it makes any sense in the real world” for background checks, after arguing that they would only impact “the little guy,” while criminals continue to buy guns illegally.
Criminals can currently walk into a gun show today and buy all the guns they want, and Wayne LaPierre wants to keep it that way.
LaPierre’s reasoning drew a sharp rebuke from Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), who heatedly told LaPierre, “criminals won’t go to purchase the guns, because there will be a background check. We’ll stop them from the original purchase,” adding, “You missed that point completely”.
Under current laws, more than 80,000 criminals were stopped in 2010 from purchasing guns at gun stores because they lied about their criminal histories. If these criminals had just gone to a gun show where background checks are not required in most sales, none of them would have been stopped.
In congress, there is still some support for universal background checks for all gun sales including gun show sales, now it’s just a matter of watering down the legislation to make it ineffectual while seemingly appeasing the public. And that ban on military style assault weapons, it has little support in congress.
On Jan. 16, 2013 President Obama announced 23 gun control measures, which include the renewal of the assault weapons band, universal background checks, and gun clip capacity, which were just some of his proposals; you can read all 23 gun control measures here.
- A transcript of President Obama’s speech in Minneapolis, MN, can be read here.
- To view President Obama’s speech in Minneapolis, MN today, click here.
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