White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters on Tuesday that US President Biden is considering “a range of levers” including executive action on gun control. The US House voted to pass two gun reform bills in early March.
These bills will soon be heard in the Senate, where they face a more difficult chance of passing, according to Politico.
“We are considering a range of levers, including working through legislation, including executive action,” Psaki told reporters. ‘That has been under discussion and will continue to be under discussion.”
“I don’t need to wait another minute, let alone an hour, to take common sense steps that will save lives in the future” Biden said, listing a ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, as well as strengthening the background check system by closing loopholes, as areas he would like to see Congress act.
Two gun control bills have passed the House and await votes in the Senate. The Senate Judiciary Committee held a debate on the issue on Tuesday. The bills face opposition from both Republicans and Democrats in the Senate.
The House passed legislation earlier this month that would expand the federal background check requirement to all firearms sales. But it faces a steep climb in the Senate, where it’s unlikely that 10 Republicans will support it.
One of the bills would establish background check requirements for gun sales between private parties, prohibiting transfers unless a licensed gun dealer, manufacturer or importer first takes possession of the firearm to conduct a background check. The other would close the so-called “Charleston loophole,” which allows some gun sales to go through before background checks are completed.
On Tuesday, the Boulder Police Department identified the 10 victims of the Colorado shooting that took place on Monday. Tributes are pouring in for Rikki Olds, Kevin Mahoney, Denny Stong, Tralona Bartkowiak, Officer Eric Talley, Lynn Murray, Suzanne Fountain, Neven Stanisic, Teri Leiker and Jody Waters.
This was the second mass shooting in the U.S. in less than a week. Before the Atlanta-area shootings last week, there had been no such killings since March 2020, according to the Violence Project.
Eight people, including six Asian women, were killed in shootings at three different businesses in Atlanta and Acworth, Georgia, on Tuesday, March 16.
