[typography font="Ubuntu Condensed" size="24" size_format="px" color="darkred"]It’s for the children, dammit.[/typography]
Surrounded by children and invoking Ronald Reagan, obama spoke today about the legislation he wanted Congress to pass -including an ‘assault rifle’ ban- to save the children.
President Barack Obama is asking Congress to expand background checks on gun buyers to include private sales and is using his executive authority to increase the information available in data banks in the background check system. The White House calls background checks the most efficient and effective way to keep guns away from dangerous individuals.
Obama wants Congress to close loopholes that permit private gun transactions to occur without background checks. The White House says nearly 40 percent of gun sales are conducted by private individuals now exempt from checking the backgrounds of buyers.
Obama is also ordering federal agencies to make “relevant data” available to the federal background check system and to remove barriers that might prevent states from providing information, particularly mental health data, for background checks.
Unilaterally, Obama plans to make federal agencies share information with the federal background check system; nominate a new ATF director; propose new rules to let law enforcement run full background checks before returning a seized gun; order the Centers for Disease Control to research causes of gun violence; require law enforcement to trace guns from criminal investigations; and take other steps.
The most controversial elements of the president’s plan, though, continue to be the proposals he wants Congress to pass.
The call for universal background checks would extend to gun shows and private sales, with “limited” exemptions for “certain transfers” among family members and other situations. The administration plans to give private sellers guidance on how to run background checks as soon as possible.
Plus the president wants to commit $4 billion to hiring more police officers, and to pass new gun trafficking laws to explicitly prohibit straw purchasing.
The comprehensive plan comes in the wake of the Connecticut school massacre, in which 20 children and six adults were killed. Obama discussed his recommendations joined by children who wrote to the White House about the issue of gun violence following the tragedy.
[typography font="Ubuntu Condensed" size="24" size_format="px" color="darkred"]“Protecting the most vulnerable among us”??[/typography]
You’re going to get tired of this graphic…
[typography font="Ubuntu Condensed" size="24" size_format="px" color="darkred"]Here is the list of the 23 executive actions obama has taken:[/typography]
Today, the President is announcing that he and the Administration will:
1. Issue a Presidential Memorandum to require federal agencies to make relevant data available to the federal background check system.
2. Address unnecessary legal barriers, particularly relating to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, that may prevent states from making information available to the background check system.
3. Improve incentives for states to share information with the background check system.
4. Direct the Attorney General to review categories of individuals prohibited from having a gun to make sure dangerous people are not slipping through the cracks.
5. Propose rulemaking to give law enforcement the ability to run a full background check on an individual before returning a seized gun.
6. Publish a letter from ATF to federally licensed gun dealers providing guidance on how to run background checks for private sellers.
7. Launch a national safe and responsible gun ownership campaign.
8. Review safety standards for gun locks and gun safes (Consumer Product Safety Commission).
9. Issue a Presidential Memorandum to require federal law enforcement to trace guns recovered in criminal investigations.
10. Release a DOJ report analyzing information on lost and stolen guns and make it widely available to law enforcement.
11. Nominate an ATF director.
12. Provide law enforcement, first responders, and school officials with proper training for active shooter situations.
13. Maximize enforcement efforts to prevent gun violence and prosecute gun crime.
14. Issue a Presidential Memorandum directing the Centers for Disease Control to research the causes and prevention of gun violence.
15. Direct the Attorney General to issue a report on the availability and most effective use of new gun safety technologies and challenge the private sector to develop innovative technologies.
16. Clarify that the Affordable Care Act does not prohibit doctors asking their patients about guns in their homes.
17. Release a letter to health care providers clarifying that no federal law prohibits them from reporting threats of violence to law enforcement authorities.
18. Provide incentives for schools to hire school resource officers.
19. Develop model emergency response plans for schools, houses of worship and institutions of higher education.
20. Release a letter to state health officials clarifying the scope of mental health services that Medicaid plans must cover.
21. Finalize regulations clarifying essential health benefits and parity requirements within ACA exchanges.
22. Commit to finalizing mental health parity regulations.
23. Launch a national dialogue led by Secretaries Sebelius and Duncan on mental health.
And I’ll leave you with this…
and not one of them would have prevented sandy hook
using children as props is disgusting
and no – his children are no more important than mine-
for that matter, no – HE isn’t any more important than me – or you – or my elderly neighbor
Totally agree on all counts!
For what it is worth – NC already does an extensive back ground check (including but not limited to mental health search) for CCH (that’s what concealed carry is called in the old north state)
For what it is worth – it is already federal law that people with mental health issues can not own weapons
For what it is worth – it is already against federal law for anyone to keep a weapon in a home with anyone living in that home having mental health issues – in a way that allows access to the weapon by the person with mental health issues (this is the law that was broken by the sandy hook shooter’s mother)
For what it is worth – it is already against the law for felons to own guns – or to be kept in a manner by a non felon that would allow access by said felon
For what it is worth – the current government sucks at enforcing federal law as it relates to firearms. At least they have up to this point.
Yup! Most of it is already in place.
They want to stop people selling guns privately.
Now, which of his brilliant ideas will Congress tackle and which ones will he ‘deem’??
they can try to stop the private sales – but it will not work
americans are creative at the very least…
Meant to say that at gun shows in this state – the vendors are all shops and still follow all the same rules that must be followed in shops – in other words – at least for handguns – you have to have a pistol permit (read background check) or CCH (read even bigger background check) or they will not sell to you until you have those things.
I don’t know about long guns…
Rifles are the same, I believe. Here they are; everyone gets a background check, even concealed carry holders, to see if they’re legit. Last time Mike bought a gun it seemed to take forever b/c the gov’t server was busy or down or something.
and yet the left keeps telling the low information voters that it is so easy to get a weapon and that anyone can just get whatever they want, whenever they want – without any wait at all…. erg
They can; they steal ‘em, just like the Sandy Hook shooter. None of Barry’s ideas would have stopped… or even slowed him…
My flying friend is a Detective Sargent with a Police Dept. – he is in charge of internal affairs – we bought the same pistol a couple weeks apart, I had to wait about an hour for the background check to take the pistol with me ( I have a CW permit), he had to wait a week before he could take it home because he only had a Gold Police Badge with Identification and not a concealed permit – now you tell me what is wrong with this picture – also in order for him to carry concealed he needs to also carry that heavy gold badge along with his ID, I only need my CW ID – The truth is, I carry for both of us when we do carry -
Also – his people violated most of the laws he is proposing, they are already on the books – until he practices what he preaches and prosecutes the current offenders of the laws already in the books he can kiss my ass –by the way, he needs to go to jail also for his involvement for his crimes –
I am sorry but you must lead by example to achieve what you are asking for -
Seemed like a lot longer than an hour!
And yes, he should go to jail!
that is cause you were trapped in the gun show with wall to wall people and nowhere to run or hide – one min seems like ten – call someone and have them lay down the phone for 5 min – you will think it was 30 – I searched these on hold forever complaints all the time
That makes sense!!