President Obama’s White House announced their plan to combat gun violence in the US after the Sandy Hook shootings a month ago in a Wednesday afternoon press conference, outlining a several-point plan to reduce unnecessary gun deaths.
Ahead of the White House gun plan briefing, several news outlets obtained a copy of the press conference’s talking points. Obama introduced a series of “common sense measures” that he says the majority of Americans support, lamenting the expiration of a prior ban on assault weapons and predicting outcry to “gin up fear” of a tyrannical government.
In the remarks, Obama indicates that “this time, we must do something to protect our communities and our kids,” and pledges to put everything he’s got into the gun violence plan — but adds that “voices” are needed in more gun-heavy communities to support the common sense measures .
The President explained:
“?This will be difficult. There will be pundits and politicians and special interest lobbyists publicly warning of a tyrannical all- out assault on liberty, not because that’s true, but because they want to gin up fear or higher ratings or revenue for themselves. And behind the scenes, they’ll do everything they can to block any commonsense reform and make sure nothing changes whatsoever.”
Obama continued:
“The only way we will be able to change is if their audience, their constituents, their membership says this time must be different, that this time we must do something to protect our communities and our kids.”
The full plan, embedded below in a document titled “Now Is the Time: The President’s Plan to Protect our Children and our Communities by Reducing Gun Violence,” involves several points for gun violence protection, including:
• Require criminal background checks for all gun sales. • Take four executive actions to ensure information on dangerous individuals is available to the background check system. • Reinstate and strengthen the assault weapons ban. • Restore the 10-round limit on ammunition magazines. • Protect police by finishing the job of getting rid of armor-piercing bullets. • Give law enforcement additional tools to prevent and prosecute gun crime. • End the freeze on gun violence research. • Make our schools safer with more school resource officers and school counselors, safer climates, and better emergency response plans. • Help ensure that young people get the mental health treatment they need. • Ensure health insurance plans cover mental health benefits.
You can read the White House gun violence plan including Obama’s executive actions below in the statement, embargoed until Obama’s remarks at noon Wednesday.