US President Biden signs first gun control law in three decades
News, US June 26, 2022 1 Comment on US President Biden signs first gun control law in three decadesThe U.S. Congress has passed its gun control bill with a majority vote, the first time in the last three decades, with bipartisan support from the country’s leading political parties.
After attaining approval from Congress, U.S. President Joe Biden signed the gun safety bill into law. This would allow tougher checks on young buyers. It would also encourage the state administrations to remove guns from the people who are considered a threat.
The new gun control bill gathered bipartisan support from the House as 14 Republicans joined the Democrats in voting in favor of the bill. The bill was passed with 193 votes out of a total of 234.
The U.S. President defined it as a “monumental day,” as he announced the signing of the bill, along with his wife Jill at the White House. He further said that this new law would “save a lot of lives.”
Two third of the Senate’s Republican representatives opposed the new legislation. Texas Senator Ted Cruz, who is seeking the Republican presidential nomination in 2024, opposed the bill by stating that it aims “to disarm law-abiding citizens rather than take serious measures to protect our children.” The National Rifle Association (NRA) has also opposed the bill by stating that it would not stop the gun violence in America.
Earlier this week, U.S. Supreme Court had rallied in favor of the U.S. individual’s right to carry a handgun in public for self-defense. Gun control laws in the U.S. has become a hot topic lately as the country is facing an increasing number of gun violence, including mass shootings and school shootings.
Several attempts to put control on gun sales had been failing one after another. A need for a stricter gun control bill became important after mass shootings last month at a supermarket in Buffalo, New York, and a primary school in Uvalde, Texas, that left 31 people dead.
President Biden and his administration have pushed for reforms in the U.S. gun control laws, suggesting a ban on assault weapons or at least increasing the age at which they can be purchased. The gunman in the Texas shooting is believed to have purchased two semi-automatic rifles days after turning 18. He used the same guns to carry out the horrific mass shooting at a local school.
The U.S. has a population of 329 million while there are an estimated 393 million firearms in the country. The U.S. has the highest number of firearms among any of the world’s developed countries.
According to Gun Violence Archive, a non-profit research group, more than 20,900 people have been killed in gun violence in the U.S. this year so far. However, still many in the country cherish their firearms by quoting Constitution’s Second Amendment which protects citizens’ right to “keep and bear arms”.
The last significant federal gun control legislation was passed in 1994, banning the manufacture for civilian use of assault rifles and large-capacity magazines, but it expired a decade later.
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[…] The current incident of mass shooting comes just a month after the deadly shootings in Uvalde, Texas, and Buffalo, New York, and only one week after Congress passed bipartisan legislation on gun control in the United States […]