On Tuesday, President Barack Obama made an emotional and passionate call for a national “sense of urgency” to limit gun violence. Obama was introduced by Mark Barden, whose son Daniel was killed in the 2012 massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School and when speaking about the tragedy he said, “Every time I think about those kids, it gets me mad.” He then added, “And by the way, it happens on the streets of Chicago everyday,” referring to his hometown.
Obama brought up the point that, “Each time this comes up, we are fed the excuse that common-sense reforms like background checks might not have stopped the last massacre, or the one before that, or the one before that, so why bother trying... I reject that thinking,” He continued saying that, “We know we can’t stop every act of violence, every act of evil in the world. But maybe we could try to stop one act of evil, one act of violence.” President Obama compared his push for gun control to the steps that the government and businesses have taken to limit fatalities on the roads and keeping children from opening bottles of aspirin.
His plan is to expand background checks for gun buyers and that individuals “in the business of selling firearms” register as licensed gun dealers. The latter of the two measures will narrow the so-called “gun show loophole” which exempts most small sellers from keeping formal sales records. Almost 21 million gun sales were processed through the background check system in 2014, but some industry analysts say that as many as 40% more firearms could have bought and sold through private transactions and thus were not subject to background checks. The Obama administration will also address other causes of gun violence; they are planning to provide more funding for mental health treatment, FBI staff, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco Firearms and Explosive agents.
President Obama addressed congressional Republicans who opposed limiting gun measures and called on the American people to punish them at the polls. He also addressed the NRA and gun lobbyists, insisting that his goal was not to just take away everyone’s guns and that his policies would not contradict the Second Amendment. He noted that many of the action’s he is calling for can only be imposed through legislative action and called on Congress, despite them having blocked a tougher gun bill in 2013. A number of his plans are only suggested “guidance” for federal agencies, not binding regulations and focus on clarifying, not expanding existing law.
House Speaker and Republican Paul Ryan said “From day one, the President had never respected the right to safe and legal gun ownership that our nation has valued since its founding... rather than focus on criminals and terrorists, he goes after the most law-abiding citizens. He insisted that Obama’s actions “will not doubt be challenged in the courts” and “can be overturned by a Republican President. On the other hand, Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton vowed in New Hampshire on Tuesday that, if she is elected, she will continue Obama’s gun control push.
The most recent poll on expanded background checks from Quinnipiac University showed 89% support the expansion of gun laws, 84% in gun-owning households, 87% of Republicans, 86% of independents, and 95% of Democrats. However a CNN/ORC poll showed that only 48% of Americans were in favor of stricter gun laws and 51% were opposed. The divide is mainly along party lines as 74% of Democrats favor stricter laws, while just 23% of Republicans feel the same way. Only 56% of Democrats and 55% of liberals support Obama’s handling of gun policy, which is well below his usual rating.
A teary Obama received a standing ovation from the White House audience, which included former Congresswoman and gun control advocate Gabby Giffords, who was seriously injured in a 2011 mass shooting.
There have been mixed opinions on the tears that Obama shed during his speech; do you think that this emotional speech will help progress his cause or not? How do you feel about the push for stricter gun control? Personally, the quote in which Obama mentions the “why bother trying mentally” resonates with me and I think that we should do anything we can to save lives, even if just a few. How do you feel?
Regarding the upcoming election, do you want to see the candidates address this issue more? How do you feel about what has been said already?
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/06/us/politics/obama-gun-control-executive-action.html?_r=0
8 comments:
The thought that the current state of gun buying is safe and legal is unfortunately laughable at best, so I should hope this issue takes on more importance in coming debates. People from all walks of life are being killed in a near epidemic of shootings, so politicians should take the need for stricter gun control to heart.
In regards to Claire’s question about my feelings toward president Obama’s speech, I believe that he was entitled to express his grief and sorrow in the tragic events that have occurred in this country as a result of gun violence. I firmly believe that as President, and as a representation of this nation he has the utmost right to show how deeply these events have affected not only this country, but his own character and the way he governs this nation. Although some may say his tears are staged, I have always viewed President Obama as a real and genuine human. He has always displayed empathy with the people of this nation, which has made him an incredible president. Furthermore, while listening to National Public Radio this past Wednesday morning there was a brief dialogue between a father who had lost his son at the hands of a gun and an interviewer. When President Obama addressed his action with gun control he had several victims of gun violence standing behind him, the father on NPR being one of them. As the interviewer asked the father several questions in regards to his experience at the White House, he expressed the genuine compassion that Obama exemplified toward he and his family. He expressed how the President took significant time to listen to his story and how Obama made sure to express his deepest condolences. The father explained that the president showed true, genuine, empathy for he and his family which not only shows that the President offered great comfort to this family, but also devoted a significant time to listening to their story. Although Obama is being scrutinized by the media for showing too much emotion, or even faking the tears he shed, I firmly believe is was genuine. Obama’s implementation for stricter gun control has been the most necessary order in this past year. The U.S. has lost thousands of lives, fathers, mothers, and children. As Claire expressed, we have to do anything to save lives and because of this I applaud Obama for recognizing that greater measures must be put into action to end massacre catalyzed by gun violence in this nation. I believe Obama was doing nothing less than sympathizing with the citizens of his country as the leader of this nation should do, because that is the job as the leader of the United States; to protect the people.
I completely agree with Obama’s desperate call for change. It’s incredible how many deaths are caused by guns alone in the U.S. every year, therefore I see that it should be of major importance to the legislators to take action and protect American lives. The best way to start going about this issue would be to set in place stricter gun control laws. These laws are aimed at making sure that a gun doesn’t end up in the wrong hands. They in no way are an attempt to deprive law-abiding citizens of their second amendment rights. Paul Ryan’s statement is ridiculous to me, especially given the fact that more people have died in the U.S. due to gun violence - 406,496 - since 2001 (includes 9/11) than from terrorism - 3,380 (these numbers are only up till 2013). That difference is enormous and a major issue. Therefore I see these regulations as vital to help curb that death toll and keep it from rising as has been the trend for the past 15 years. It is no wonder that Obama got emotional during his speech. It is very frustrating to hear these statistics and yet see no action taken to rectify this issue. It is especially frustrating that people don’t even see the worth in trying to take these preventative measures, as Obama pointed out.
I feel that now that Obama has given this impactful speech about the hot topic of gun control, I think we will start to see more and more candidates address the issue head on, just as Hillary Clinton has already done. Since this issue is so important and regards the safety and well being of every American I hope that the issue is addressed properly by all the candidates. Although sadly most of the Republicans, especially those who are extremely conservative or want to preserve a strong conservative base of voters will continue along party lines and go against any effort to impose gun control laws.
Above all I feel that one of the most basic and important roles of the government is to ensure Americans’ safety, and at the moment that idea isn’t being reflected when it comes to purchasing and owning a gun.
http://www.cnn.com/2015/10/02/us/oregon-shooting-terrorism-gun-violence/
I fully support President Obama's Tuesday speech, "Guns in America," as it is about time that something is done. The evidence that gun control laws truly make a difference is valid and astounding, contrary to the Republican argument that criminals will always get a hold of guns. We have a gun homicide rate that is 20 times higher than that of Australia, which reevaluated gun laws after a mass shooting. Massachusetts and New York have the strictest gun regulations and the lowest gun death rates. When Missouri eased their restrictions, the firearm homicide rate rose 25 percent. On the other hand, when Connecticut increased restrictions, gun homicides decreased by 40 percent. This is clear evidence of how gun laws impact gun violence. This is not evidence that is speculated or assumed. It is hard fact. The Republicans who oppose Obama's actions and those who favor increased gun control are "on the wrong side of history." This is especially certain considering that as Claire mentioned, 84% of Americans say yes to background checks for all sales of guns. It is common sense. The Republicans are making fools of themselves in how they are responding to Obama's speech. Chris Christie called Obama a "petulant child," Jeb Bush labeled Obama's agenda as "gun-grabbing," and I think Ted Cruz's website speaks for itself (see http://support.tedcruz.org/obama-wants-your-guns/aa/)
To the point of Obama's tears, I agree with Caroline that he was sincere. Even Donald Trump said, "I actually think he was sincere, I'll probably go down about 5 points in the polls by saying that, but I think he was sincere." Republicans are definitely overestimating Obama's acting skills to cry on command. I don't understand those who feel that the act of crying when discussing the 225,000 Americans who have died at the hands of guns in just the seven years he has been President. As Nicholas Kristof says, "we should all be in tears..."
At this point, this should not be a party issue. This is an American issue. As Amanda said, the government's most essential role is to protect its people and it is currently not fulfilling its duty to its citizens.
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/07/opinion/guns-tears-and-republicans.html?_r=0
http://www.cnn.com/2016/01/06/politics/donald-trump-obama-tears-sincere-executive-action/
I believe that how Obama feels about gun control, very emotional and angry, is exactly how everyone should feel about it; everyone should be tearing. So many people die from gun violence every year, and it has to be resolved. As Claire said, the statement, "Why bother trying," makes me angry and scared for the future of our country because it presents a sense of hopelessness for our safety, and also shows a very passive attitude toward extremely tragic events. Quoting Obama, "We know we can’t stop every act of violence, every act of evil in the world. But maybe we could try to stop one act of evil, one act of violence." I believe that in order to make our nation safer, we MUST pass stricter gun laws. Even if they may not save hundreds of lives per year, saving even one life makes it worth it. I would like to hear more discussion about this issue from the candidates of the upcoming election because this is one of the most prevalent issues at the moment; if gun violence does not dramatically improve soon, I do not believe our country will have a bright, safe future.
I support the push for greater gun control. Our country has faced far too many shootings to ignore current gun control policies. I agree with Claire that the change is worth however many lives it can save even if it's just one. Obama's emotions may have been a tactic to rally support for his cause and if it was--it worked. His tears were genuine and portray the real reason he is making this executive order. He is not exerting his influence just to “advance his political agenda”, as Ben Carson tweeted out in opposition, but to try and protect innocent people from unnecessary and tragic deaths.
I definitely want to see candidates addressing this issue more before the Iowa caucus. This could be a defining feature of their campaign and change many opinions. Gun control is and has been a major issue in our country and should be addressed if candidates want to be taken seriously. I am glad to hear that Hilary Clinton, Bernie Sanders, and Martin O’Malley have all shown support for Obama’s executive order. Meanwhile Republicans Ted Cruz, Donald Trump, Marco Rubio, Jeb Bush, Ben Carson and Mike Huckabee are all against Obama’s decision to expand background checks on gun purchases and increase funding for mental health and law enforcement agencies that perform those background checks, on the basis that it is unconstitutional. "Look the Second Amendment is so important. It's so important," Trump stated at a rally. Though the Second Amendment is in fact important, I agree with Amanda and Ally: the safety of Americans should be our first priority.
http://www.cnn.com/2016/01/05/politics/obama-gun-control-republican-reaction/
After watching President Obama's speech, I was truly happy to finally see somebody show some passion regarding the issue. America has the highest number of gun related deaths each year out of any country, which is something that as Americans we cannot be content with. I agree with Ally in the sense that the only way to resolve the problem is to take it head on, and change or make new laws making gun laws stricter, and people on the no fly list should not be allowed to own a fire arm. If you are too dangerous to fly on a plane, you are too dangerous to own a fire arm. President Obama was as genuine as I've seem him in this particular speech, and I agreed with everything he had to say. In the last Democratic debate, I thought that all 3 candidates did an excellent job addressing the issue of gun violence, particularly Martin O'Malley. I agree with everything that Obama has had to say, but in terms of what the Republicans have had to say, I disagree mostly. After the San Bernardino shooting, Trump stated that if there were U.S. men with guns inside the building, the issue would have been prevented. Ever heard of the phrase when you fight fire with fire, you just get a bigger fire. The solution to gun violence will not be by increasing security in the U.S., it will be by passing stricter gun laws, and making it more difficult for people to obtain a firearm. Furthermore, the second amendment was more intended for people to defend themselves from Indian attacks, as well as assemble a state militia. In this day in age, we should consider the possibility that the second amendment might be outdated. All in all, it seems that the war on gun violence is moving in a more positive direction, and President Obama's speech seems to be the turning point.
I know I'm preaching to the choir at this point, but I have very passionate sentiments regarding this issue. Obama's speech was incredibly genuine, and the assumption that he was simply "fake crying" is both false and insensitive. Being the president in a country where mass shootings are indeed an epidemic, President Obama had every right to feel this way. In fact, let's be honest; anyone who doesn't feel grief at the thought of almost thirty innocent children dying is probably a sociopath. Though I applaud Obama's efforts, it is unlikely that this will have much of an effect on the policy-making process in Congress. Republicans will continue to foolhardily stand by the Second Amendment, since they know that their reelection counts on it. Even though Obama's speech and executive order are for the purpose of expanding background checks and narrowing the gun show loophole (two things that will have no effect on gun buyers that have nothing to hide), Republican politicians know that any instance in which they seem to be conceding to gun control measures is a death sentence to their reelection. As Obama said in his discussion tonight on CNN about "Guns in America," many of these Republicans probably support expanded background checks, but they nonetheless vote against them to boost their ratings among Republican voters. It's all politics. If anyone makes any effort to save people's lives from gun violence, voters will immediately regard them as sympathizers with Obama (you know, the guy who is supposedly hell-bent on taking your guns). Regarding the statistics mentioned in Claire's post, the deviation between the numbers reported by Quinnipiac and those reported by CNN/ORC makes me skeptical to believe either of them. Nonetheless, it's obvious that a very large portion of Americans do not want any of their precious gun rights to be taken away. Even though many people don't understand that Obama's executive action is for the purpose of expanding background checks (I've spoken to many people that previously believed that this executive order was an attempt to confiscate guns), politicians still feel that their future campaigns depend on them going along with what misinformed voters think.
I can't believe I'm saying this, but Trump was actually being the bigger man compared to his Republican opponents, especially Ted Cruz. As Ally said, Trump stated how "I actually think [Obama] was sincere, I'll probably go down about 5 points in the polls by saying that, but I think he was sincere." Even something as insignificant as believing in Obama's sincerity is enough to make a Republican candidate drop in the polls, and though Trump acknowledged this, he said it anyway. Despite how much of a *expletive* Trump is, at least he had the guts to say what he truly felt, as opposed to basing everything he says around what the dumbest members of American society want.
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