Biden calls on Congress to pass tougher US gun laws after mass shootings

By Darren Lyn

HOUSTON, Texas (AA) - US President Joe Biden urged Congress on Thursday to pass tougher gun laws in the wake of a recent mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas, where an 18-year-old gunman legally purchased and carried an assault rifle which he used to kill 19 students and two teachers.

“Innocent victims murdered in a classroom turned into a killing field,” Biden said in a speech addressing the nation. “Guns are the number one killer of children in the United States of America.”

He called on Congress to make real changes in the country’s gun laws, including banning assault weapons.

“If we can’t ban assault weapons, then we should raise the age to purchase them from 18 to 21,” he continued. “Don’t tell me raising the age won’t make a difference. Enough.”

Biden made reference to the Buffalo, New York mass shooting, where another 18-year-old gunman used an assault weapon to kill 10 people at a grocery store. He also referred to other deadly mass shootings in the US over the past several decades, including at Columbine High School in Colorado, Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut and Parkland High School in Florida.

“There are too many other schools, too many other everyday places that have become killing fields, battlefields here in America,” he continued. “This time we must actually do something.”

Biden also called on lawmakers to ban high-capacity magazines, expand background checks and enact safe storage and red flag laws, as well as repeal gun manufacturers’ immunity from liability.​​​​​​​

“The second amendment, like all other rights, is not absolute,” he said. “This is not about taking away anyone’s guns…It’s not about vilifying gun owners.”