President Joe Biden on Friday condemned a deadly shooting at a FedEx facility in Indianapolis and again called for the passage of gun-control laws in Congress.
The president called the shooting, which left eight people dead, the “latest in a string of tragedies” involving guns, and ordered flags to be flown half-staff at the White House and other federal facilities.
“Last night and into the morning in Indianapolis, yet again families had to wait to hear word about the fate of their loved ones. What a cruel wait and fate that has become too normal and happens every day somewhere in our nation,” Biden said in the statement, while adding that “we should not accept it” and “we must act.”
Biden said that it is up to Congress to act on gun laws, including several bills that have already been passed in the House of Representatives.
“I also urged Congress to hear the call of the American people---including the vast majority of gun owners---to enact commonsense gun violence prevention legislation, like universal background checks and a ban of weapons of war and high-capacity magazines,” Biden said.
The Senate, which is evenly divided at 50-50, has not taken them up yet, and it is likely that Democrats would be unable to overcome the 60-vote filibuster. Some Republicans including Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) have signaled they would support a bipartisan gun-control bill.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki said that Congress has to pass a bill now. Biden last week issued executive orders on re-classifying pistols with stabilizing braces as rifles, proposals on “red flag” gun laws, and restrictions on do-it-yourself “ghost guns.”
“The Senate should take up and pass the three bills strengthening background checks that passed the House with bipartisan majorities, and have the overwhelming support of the American people,” Psaki said. “They should heed the president’s call to pass a ban on assault weapons and high capacity magazines, and end immunity for gun manufacturers.”
The Epoch Times has contacted several gun rights groups, including Gun Owners for America, for comment about Psaki’s statements on Friday.
Previously, Gun Owners for America said that ending the legal shield for gun manufacturers would “hold these legitimate businesses liable for the abuse of their lawful products by criminals.”
“Their ultimate goal: to ban guns (or make them prohibitively expensive) by suing into bankruptcy those who legally produced and sold them,” the group said.
Other opponents have said that universal background checks like the one passed in the House last month are a way for the federal government to keep a registry of legal gun owners and what weapons they have.
“So, we have to ask ourselves the question: If we’re going to infringe on people’s liberties, what are we doing it for? It’s not going to do any good if it’s not going to actually prevent tragedies. Why are we infringing on people’s liberties?”
