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Obama unveils $500 million gun violence package

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The Associated Press: Obama unveils $500 million gun violence package
President Barack Obama is announcing a $500 million package of executive actions and legislative proposals aimed at reducing gun violence a month after a mass shooting in Connecticut killed 20 elementary school children.
The package includes a call on Congress to ban military-style assault weapons and high-capacity magazine and it would close loopholes in the gun sale background check system.
Obama also is signing 23 executive actions — which require no congressional approval — including several aimed at improving access to data for background checks. A presidential memorandum will instruct the Centers for Disease Control to research causes and prevention of gun violence.
In addition, Obama will nominate Todd Jones as director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Jones currently is the acting director of the agency.

Overall, it seems to be on par with the speculation. Realistically, the legislative proposals will not make it through Congress. I would have liked to see more focus on increasing security at soft targets such as malls and schools. I don't see how any of it will stop another mass shooting from taking place.

Update: More info

Obama unveils gun-control proposals - The Washington Post
Obama’s plan also includes reinstating and strengthening the assault weapons ban, restoring a 10-round limit on ammunition magazines, getting rid of armor-piercing bullets, ending a freeze on research into gun violence and providing additional tools to prevent and prosecute gun crime. It calls on Congress to pass a $4 billion proposal to help communities keep 15,000 police officers on the streets, as well as new gun trafficking legislation that would “impose serious penalties on those who help get guns into the hands of criminals,” according to the White House fact sheet.
 
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Good luck paying for it without Congress.
 
None of what he proposes would have stopped Sandy Hook.

None of it.

So its just the liberal slimery using the blood of 27 innocent victims to perpetuate a long standing liberal dream.

To disarm or attempt to disarm the American public.
 
So far what I've been able to read, the executive orders deal mostly with existing background checks and such.

Looks like any potential bans would be left up to Congress.
 
Typical Obama logic:

It calls on Congress to pass a $4 billion proposal to help communities keep 15,000 police officers on the streets...

The answer to all problems is more income redistribution, increasing federal gov't power and ignoring any personal responsibility. Congress should give him a resounding NO, unless the Obama "crisis" legislation reduces other gov't spending under the "pay as you go" rules that Obama seems so fond of. Since when did paying for local police officers, teachers and firefighters become a federal power? All should ask why a nation that "lacks resources" to secure our border and enforce immigration law needs more "resources" to fight local crime or divert more federal prosecution efforts to those "selling guns" than those commiting violent crime with them. Anyone "in charge" of running fast & fuzzy that now wants to stop illegal gun sales has got to be questioned.
 
On a positive note, Obama has finally nominated a director of the ATF.
 
I made a bunch of notes while I was watching/listening to the speech.....

On Mr. Biden's Comments:

"The Nation's Conscience"... The US hasn't had a Conscience since at least 1865, and possibly longer back than that.

He talked about meeting with all these groups and people. How about turning to the Founding Document of the nation instead, or at least in addition to doing that, Joe? Ever think of that?

The appeals to emotion rather than facts and reason are getting very old, very quick with many of us.


On Mr. Obama's Comments:

He spoke about bringing all those voices to the table. How about bringing the US Constitution to the table as well.

We now allow children to make policy for the US Government? Do they now get to plan the school lunch menus and their own bedtimes as well?

More appeals to emotion. 900+ dead from firearms in the last month. Okay. How many have died in car accidents, from cancer, or heart disease in that same period of time?

He comments that he's going to sign TWENTY-THREE Executive Orders and tells us about THREE of them.... Strengthening Background Checks, School Resource Officers and Violence Prevention Classes in Schools, and telling the CDC to study gun violence. Okay. So what's in the other TWENTY Executive Orders?

He announces the things he wants Congress to do, which he should know are not going to happen...

Universal Background Checks. He tells us background checks have stopped 1.5 million illegal purchases in the last 14 years, but leaves out that almost NONE of those people have been PROSECUTED for making those attempts.

The Assault Weapons Ban, for which his highest praise is that a Liberal, West Coast Democrat - Ronald Reagan - supported it in 1994.

Magazine Ban on more than 10 round mags, which he doesn't discuss at all.

Increasing the penalties for Straw Purchases. What's the point when the Government hasn't bothered to actually PROSECUTE these people when they've caught them in the past?

Nomination of Todd Jones to be the permanent director of BATFE. Isn't this the guy who let Holder run the stupid Fast & Furious program?

Funding for local LEO's. Where is that money going to come from?


"The only way we can change is if people demand it." - Wonderful. So why are you proposing things that The People are not demanding?

"With rights come responsibilities" - Since when, and why doesn't this apply to the people on welfare too?

"We are responsible for each other" - Since when, and where do you find that in the Founding Documents?

"....Counting on us to keep them safe from harm" - Why? The SCOTUS has already ruled that the LEO's do NOT have the responsibility to protect citizens from harm, only to arrest those who break the law and help prosecute them. Why would anyone place their safety and well-being in the hands of ANYONE ELSE, nevermind the Government, which is probably the least useful group to help with that?
 
Overall, it seems to be on par with the speculation.
If it had been on par with the speculation here on DP, I would have taken my family to one of the bug out spots around the country to avoid the warfare.

Thankfully, it's much more banal than the breathless speculation from some fronts.
 
In particular, it seems odd that the CDC has been prevented from studying gun violence.

wtf is up w/ that?
 
If it had been on par with the speculation here on DP, I would have taken my family to one of the bug out spots around the country to avoid the warfare.

Thankfully, it's much more banal than the breathless speculation from some fronts.

Not the initial speculation, but it is close to what people have been saying for the last couple of days here. There were some extreme predictions but most seemed to think it would be along these lines.
 
In particular, it seems odd that the CDC has been prevented from studying gun violence.

wtf is up w/ that?

I think it was just big cuts in funding that made research hard, not a ban on the study.
 
Universal background checks--this essentially ends private sales no?

Wouldn't have stopped Sandy Hook--the guns were his mother's and she passed her background check with flying colors.

Assault weapons ban--quoting Regan is always a powerful way to stick it to gunhawks.

All in all, using children as a shameless emotional appeal really does sicken me. Preach your recommendations on merit, Mr. President.
 
$4 billion? Jesus.
 
And then Obama said the law should get tougher on people who buy guns with the purpose of selling them to criminals.

ATF.GOV

ATF gunwalking scandal - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This dude is a joke

That was precisely my thought.

When I read:

In order to prevent and respond to gun violence, we must give law enforcement every tool they need to keep us safe. That includes passing stronger laws to stop those who would put guns into the hands of criminals, keeping 15,000 cops on the street, and eliminating restrictions that keep federal law enforcement from doing its job....

All I could think was:

campaign-political-gamesmanship.jpeg.jpg
 
In particular, it seems odd that the CDC has been prevented from studying gun violence.

wtf is up w/ that?

Tea Party Occupied Congress banned studying gun violence, because they know it would result in the conclusion that we must restrict gun ownership.
 
Tea Party Occupied Congress banned studying gun violence, because they know it would result in the conclusion that we must restrict gun ownership.

They know that it is irrelevent since no amendment to the Constitution would survive a vote nor ratification. But keep the dream alive, buddy. :lol:
 
Universal background checks--this essentially ends private sales no?

Wouldn't have stopped Sandy Hook--the guns were his mother's and she passed her background check with flying colors.

Assault weapons ban--quoting Regan is always a powerful way to stick it to gunhawks.

All in all, using children as a shameless emotional appeal really does sicken me. Preach your recommendations on merit, Mr. President.

To your first point, you're wrong. You can already privately sell your firearm through an FFL (as anyone who has sold online is fully aware of). This should be a federal law (and has broad support). As to your second point, addressing mental health in this country and talking openly about it does address what transpired at Sandy Hook. And finally your last point really highlights the truth in this debate (though not directly). Conservatives don't believe in any regulation on gun control. Feel free to vilify the President. But to suggest that he is merely capitalizing on an event and not following through with his true beliefs is very misguided.
 
None of what he proposes would have stopped Sandy Hook.

None of it.

So its just the liberal slimery using the blood of 27 innocent victims to perpetuate a long standing liberal dream.

To disarm or attempt to disarm the American public.

None of what was proposed would have stopped Sandy Hook but you think it disarms you?
 
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