Biden calls for ban on military-style assault weapons, calls out GOP inaction – National & International News – FRI 3Jun2022

Biden calls for ban on military-style assault weapons, calls out GOP inaction. 15,000 march through Mexico in largest migrant caravan ever.

NATIONAL NEWS

Biden calls for ban on military-style assault weapons

In an emotional address last evening, President Biden asked the nation “How much more carnage are we willing to accept?”. Speaking of the pain of families affected by gun violence, Biden said too many school and other places in America have become “killing fields”.

Biden called on Congress to pass common sense gun control legislation. One such suggestion was a ban on military-style assault weapons. However, even Biden seemed to acknowledge that with current make-up of Congress, banning the sale of weapons that carry dozens of bullets capable of tearing bodies apart is too much of an ask. If we can’t have that much, Biden suggested, “then we should at least raise the age [of purchase] to 21”.

Since the start of 2022, there have been 233 mass shootings in the US. Following just two of those that grabbed headlines, Americans are squarely behind efforts to enact gun control. Recent polls show that 63% of Americans support a ban on assault weapons, 81% support background checks, and 87% support mental health restrictions on firearms purchases.

Despite broad support for these measures even among Republican voters, Republican Senators (with financial backing from the NRA and gun manufacturers, largely remain resistant to even minimal gun control. Biden called them out during his speech. “My God,” he said, “the fact that a majority of the Senate Republicans don’t want any of these proposals even to be debated or come up for a vote I find unconscionable. We can’t fail the American people again”.

Earlier that day, Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-TX) had lashed out at Democrats who “accuse Republicans of being complicit in murder”. “How dare you,” Gohmert said, “You think we don’t have hearts?”.

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INTERNATIONAL NEWS

15,000 march through Mexico in largest migrant caravan ever

In Chiapas State, Mexico, which borders Guatemala, about 15,000 migrants have gathered to begin the long march to the US border together. Large groups of migrants routinely meet in Chiapas to begin their journey, but this may be the largest ever.

According to Luís Villagrán, an activist and caravan organizer, 70% of the marchers in this caravan are women and children. The largest portion are from Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua. But there are also many Haitians, Salvadorans, Hondurans, Guatemalans and even people from as far away as Asia and Africa.

Most of the marchers are minimally provisioned, have only one pair of shoes or flip flops. They’ve assembled in a large group for safety and mutual support. The migrants will face dangers not only from the elements, but possible violence from cartels and even the Mexico National Guard.

In a few days, the leaders of many of the migrants’ home countries will attend the Summit of the Americas in Los Angeles. Immigration and humanitarian aid will likely be high on the agenda.

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