WASHINGTON, D.C. — While saying that he is still waiting for the investigation into the nation’s latest mass shooting to be complete, President Joe Biden on Tuesday said he cannot stand by and do nothing to address gun violence.
While saying he will have more to say on the subject once all the details are in, the president called for the Senate to pass two bills already passed by the House, which would require universal background checks and ban assault weapons.
“I don’t need to wait another minute, let alone an hour, to take common-sense steps that will save lives in the future, and to urge my colleagues in the House and Senate to act.,” Biden said. “We can ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines in the country once again. I got that done when I was a senator. It passed. It was the law the longest time, and it brought down these mass killings. We should do it again. We can close the loopholes in our background check system, including the Charleston loophole. That’s one of the best tools we have right now to prevent gun violence.”
The president’s remarks come one day after a shooter killed 10 people, including a police officer, at a supermarket in Boulder, Colo., and one week after a gunman killed eight people, including six Asian Americans, at three massage parlors in the Atlanta, Ga., area.