US senators announce limited deal to curb gun violence
June 12, 2022
US senators on Sunday announced a bipartisan framework of measures aimed at curbing rampant gun violence plaguing the country.
"Today, we are announcing a commonsense, bipartisan proposal to protect America's children, keep our schools safe, and reduce the threat of violence across our country," the group of 20 lawmakers said in a statement.
What are some of the proposed steps?
The proposals include tougher background checks for gun buyers under 21 and increasing resources for states to keep weapons out of the hands of people who are dangerous to others or themselves.
The suspects who killed 10 people at a grocery store in Buffalo and 19 students and two teachers at an elementary school in Uvalde were both 18, and many of the attackers who have committed mass shootings in recent years have been young.
The agreement would also offer money to states to implement "red flag'' laws that make it easier to temporarily take guns from people considered potentially violent, and to bolster school safety and mental health programs.
The proposals however still falls far short of tougher stepsPresident Joe Biden and many Democrats have been calling for.
Biden hails proposals as 'important steps'
US President Joe Biden on Sunday praised the limited proposals as "important steps," while noting that they fell short of his calls for more radical change.
"Obviously, it does not do everything that I think is needed, but it reflects important steps in the right direction, and would be the most significant gun safety legislation to pass Congress in decades," Biden said in a statement.
Given the bipartisan support, "there are no excuses for delay, and no reason why it should not quickly move through the Senate and the House,'' he said.
Biden had called for more far-reaching measures after recent shootings including at an elementary school in Texas in which 19 children and two teachers were killed.
dh/kb (AFP, AP)