President Barack Obama, his voice rising with emotion, urged Americans to pile pressure on a reluctant Congress to approve new gun control legislation that is at risk of falling victim to Washington gridlock.
«We need a vote,» he shouted.
Obama took his gun control argument to the University of Hartford, an hour’s drive from the town of Newtown where 20 children and six educators were shot to death in December in a massacre that shocked Americans and spurred a fresh movement to tighten gun regulations.
Initial momentum for tougher US gun control laws sought by Obama has stalled in Congress in the face of fierce lobbying by the National Rifle Association and other gun rights groups.
No major gun legislation has passed the US Congress since 1994 and the current White House guns push is in trouble.
Obama said his three priorities in gun legislation – strengthening background checks for gun purchasers, banning military-style assault weapons and limiting ammunition clips to 10 rounds – deserve a vote in Congress.
Only the background checks portion of his proposal is still seen as possible, and even this is in doubt as Democratic senators fail to find Republican partners to help them approve it.
«The policy window is either really close to closed, or closed entirely,» said John Hudak, of the Brookings Institution think tank. «In honesty, this is really a last-ditch effort by the White House.»
Obama’s tone grew fiery as he pushed back against the idea that what happens to gun violence legislation in Congress will either be a political victory or defeat for him.
«Connecticut, this is not about me,» he said. «This is not about politics. This is about doing the right thing for all the families who are here that have been torn apart by gun violence.»
Source: Buenos Aires Herald