President Joe Biden proposed some weapons security policies in the national address, which also received the support of Governor Jim Justice.
One of them was the increased age limit for semi-automatic rifles from 18 to 21 years. The second was increased support for mental health services.
“After Columbine, after Sandy Hook, after Charleston, after Orlando, after Las Vegas, after Parkland, nothing has been done,” Biden said during a national address in prime time. “It simply cannot be true this time. We really have to do something this time. “
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9GPtFM3KiIU
Biden has asked Congress to respond to a series of laws following a series of mass shootings, including an elementary school in Texas. One of his proposals was to reintroduce a national ban on semi-automatic rifles, although he acknowledged the unlikely probability of a political consensus on such broad restrictions.
“We have to ban ‘assault weapons’ and high-capacity magazines. And if we can’t ban assault weapons, then we should raise the age of purchase from 18 to 21. Strengthen background checks. Adopt laws on safe storage and laws on the red flag. Abolish immunity that protects arms manufacturers from liability. Deal with the mental health crisis by deepening the trauma and violence with weapons and as a consequence of that violence.
“These are rational measures of common sense,” said Biden, a Democrat.
His words were addressed not only to the American public, but also to the Congress, where members of the evenly divided American Senate discussed which weapons security measures could have sufficient support for their adoption.
West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrissey, a Republican, wrote on social media after Biden’s speech that he will fight against gun restrictions in the federal court system.
“As West Virginia’s attorney general, I will not allow the federal government and Biden’s gun control policy to be harsh on my state. I will oppose Biden’s radical policy, I will sue his administration and West Virginia will win! ” Morisei wrote on Twitter.
This week, the Governor of Justice indicated that he would not support the ban on semi-automatic weapons. “The reality of this whole thing is this, just taking aspirin for cancer will do nothing. That will not cure anything, “Justice said this week.
The governor’s emphasis over the past week has been on the effects of social factors such as violent video games, social media and pornography on the isolation of young men.
But the Republican governor seemed open to policies that would raise the age limit for possession of such weapons from 18 to 21. Justice has repeated this several times, although he did not say that he would advocate for a change in state policy.
“Do I really feel like an 18-year-old should be able to come in and buy a weapon to attack?” I don’t, “Justice said. “But from the point of view of the 21-year-old, that is another matter. It should be 21 years for me.
Justice has also advocated for increased mental health resources. “Absolutely, in my opinion, we should strengthen mental health programs, because there are so many problems across the country, it is out of the plan,” the governor said.
He later said: “We absolutely know that mental health problems are widespread today. Why don’t we do something about it? “
Biden’s remarks were in line with the governor’s remarks.
“Even before the pandemic, young people were already injured. There is a serious crisis in the mental health of young people in this country. We need to do something about it. That is why mental health is the heart of my agenda of unity, which I set out in my speech on the situation in the Union this year, “the president said.
“We need to provide more school counselors; more school nurses; more mental health services for students and teachers. More people are volunteering as mentors to help young people succeed. More protection of privacy and resources to protect children from the harm of social media. ”
The national debate on gun safety has resumed after a series of mass shootings, recently killing nineteen elementary school students and two teachers in Texas.
An armed attacker in Uvalde, Texas, bought a semi-automatic rifle at a local sports equipment store the day after he turned 18, authorities said. He returned a few days later to buy 375 rounds of ammunition, and then an AR-style rifle.
The mass shooting in Texas lasted just over a week after the second in which 10 people were killed in a store in Buffalo, New York. The shooter there, also 18, used a Bushmaster KSM-15, bought in a weapons store. The background check was obviously clean, although the shooter was ordered to submit a psychiatric assessment almost a year ago.
Across the nation, discussions included additional support for mental health services, support to ensure school entry is restricted, red flag laws that allow the temporary confiscation of weapons from people who pose a danger to themselves or others, raising the legal age for buying weapons , ban high-capacity magazines or expanded background checks.
The senators engaged in bipartisan negotiations to determine the possibility of a common approach.
Senator Joe Manchin, DV.Wa., has publicly expressed support for a series of political changes, including raising the age limit for semi-automatic rifles, red flag laws to temporarily remove weapons from people considered a threat to themselves or others, and a type of expanded background check which he had previously supported.
“Yes, we are looking at everything,” Mancin said on state radio. “Two things we know that could have stopped it for sure is raising the age - an 18-year-old could not buy it. The second is the red flag law, which we know works in states like Florida.