On the third anniversary of the Parkland school shooting, President Joe Biden called on Congress to stricter gun laws adopted, including the ban on assault weapons. In a statement from the White House, Mr. Biden called on Congress on Sunday to pass laws requiring background checks on all arms sales, banning high-capacity assault weapons and magazines and lifting the immunity of gun manufacturers.
“Today, as we mourn with the Parkland community, we mourn all those who have lost loved ones to violence,” he said. Biden said.
The White House has no further details about Mr. Biden’s plan does not provide.
On February 14, 2018, a gunman opened fire on Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, killing 17. Since then, many students and community members have become passionate crusaders for stricter gun laws. The gunman is still awaiting trial.
Their organization, March for Our Lives, has Mr. Biden urged to appoint a weapons expert who will serve in an adjoining cabinet. According to a statement sent to CNN in December, the group called for a national director of gun prevention “to reflect the notion that gun violence is a public health crisis and that it is affecting our most vulnerable population.”
Mr. Biden promised on the campaign trail to act within his first 100 days in office over guns. Last week, the arms control groups Everytown for Gun Safety, Moms Demand Action and Students Demand Action said they had met with members of the Biden government. Both Everytown and Moms Demand said they had released roadmaps on how the Biden government could take action on gun violence.
Fred Guttenberg, whose daughter Jaime was killed during the Parkland shooting, tweeted on February 12 that he had met with Biden domestic policy adviser Susan Rice.
“Thank you @ AmbRice46 for your long time yesterday. President @JoeBiden told me personally about his commitment to lead on the gun safety issue and that the commitment was strengthened in our conversation yesterday. I look forward to working with the @Wit Huis on this, ” Guttenberg wrote.
Tim Perry contributed to this report.