President Obama on Wednesday vowed to pursue a consensus on violence reduction, “looking at everything we can do” to prevent gun crimes like the tragedy in Colorado last week.
In his first remarks on gun violence since the movie-theater shooting that left 12 people dead and dozens injured, Obama reiterated his support for the Second Amendment. But the president also said there should be limitations on guns like AK-47s, which “belong in the hands of soldiers, not in the hands of criminals."
“I, like most Americans, believe that the Second Amendment guarantees an individual the right to bear arms,” Obama said in a speech before the National Urban League in New Orleans. “I think we recognize the traditions of gun ownership passed on from generation to generation, that hunting and shooting are part of a cherished national heritage.
“But I also believe that a lot of gun owners would agree that AK-47s belong in the hands of soldiers, not in the hands of criminals; that they belong on the battlefield of war, not on the streets of our cities,” he said.
In his remarks — the most extensive on the gun-control topic during his presidency — Obama said he believes most gun owners would agree “we should do everything possible" to prevent criminals and fugitives from purchasing weapons and that criminal records should be carefully examined before they obtain firearms. The president, who spent time with victims of the Colorado shooting on Sunday, also offered that "a mentally unbalanced individual should not be able to get his hands on a gun so easily."
“These steps shouldn’t be controversial,” he said. “They should be common sense."
For more on Obama's remarks, click here.
