President Joe Biden claimed that “no amendment to the Constitution is absolute” as he pushed back against assertions that his gun control executive actions were impinging on Second Amendment rights.
“Nothing I am about to recommend in any way impinges on the Second Amendment,” the Democratic president said.
“They’re phony arguments suggesting that these are Second Amendment rights at stake with what we’re talking about.”
.@JoeBiden introduces his gun plan:
"No amendment to the Constitution is absolute. You can't yell 'fire' in a crowded movie theater and call it freedom of speech. From the beginning, you couldn't own any weapon you wanted to own." pic.twitter.com/shOkaXmLqH
— Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) April 8, 2021
He said that anyone yelling fire in a crowded movie theater couldn’t call the action “freedom of speech.”
“From the very beginning, you couldn’t own any weapon you wanted to own,” Biden said.
“From the very beginning the Second Amendment existed, certain people were not allowed to have weapons,” he added.
“So, the idea is just bizarre to suggest that some of the things we’re recommending are contrary to the Constitution.”
Biden introduced a series of executive actions to address gun violence, which he described as a “public health crisis” and “an epidemic.”
The Justice Department has been directed to propose a series of rules to help “stop the proliferation of ‘ghost guns,’” according to a fact sheet from the White House.
Ghost guns lack a serial number and are made from a kit that can be obtained without a background check, according to USA Today.
The president also wants changes to federal policy surrounding the use of stabilizing braces on pistols, referencing the Ruger AR-556 semi-automatic pistol used in the Boulder, Colorado, shooting.
Biden has also directed the Justice Department to propose “red flag” legislation for states, which would give courts the power to temporarily keep someone from owning a gun “if they present a danger to themselves or others.”
“I am under no illusions about how hard it is to solve the problems of gun violence, and I know the Justice Department alone cannot solve the problem,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said, according to CBS News.
“But there is work for the department to do, and we intend to do it.”
While Biden called on the Senate to pass bills that had been passed in the House to expand background checks, he said he was not afraid to act without Congress.
“Whether Congress acts or not, I’m going to use all of the resources at my disposal as president of the United States to protect Americans from gun violence,” Biden said.
Story cited here.
