Oscar-winning actor Matthew McConaughey appeared at the White House on Tuesday to meet with US President Joe Biden and make an emotional call for arms control measures following a deadly shooting in the United States. elementary school in his hometown of Uvalde, Texas, two weeks ago.
Nineteen children and two teachers were shot dead at Robb Elementary School on May 24 by an 18-year-old gunman wielding a semi-automatic rifle.
McConaughey, who publicly considered running for governor in Texas last year but eventually ruled it out, met briefly with Biden at the White House before appearing at the daily press conference, the secretary of press Karine Jean-Pierre.
The 52-year-old actor told reporters, “Uvalde is where I was taught to worship the power and ability of the tool we call a weapon. Uvalde is where I learned responsible ownership of weapons.”
He said responsible gun owners were “fed up with the Second Amendment being abused and hijacked by some upset individuals” and urged raising the minimum age to buy an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle at 21 years old.
Gun rights advocates say the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution guarantees the right to own and carry firearms.
McConaughey appeared to suffocate several times as he showed photos of some of the child victims and talked about their families, what they wore the day they were shot, and what they wanted to be when they grew up.
The actor also made a brief biography of each victim, punching the lectern at a given time to describe one of them.
Speaking to reporters, McConaughey, who is from Uvalde, gave details of each child who was shot dead in his hometown while holding children’s artwork. (Win McNamee / Getty Images)
“As we honor and acknowledge the victims, we must acknowledge that this time it seems like something is different,” he said.
“There is a feeling that there may be a viable path to follow. The parties responsible for this debate seem to be at least committed to sitting down and having a real conversation about a new and improved path.”
McConaughey spoke as Democrats in the U.S. Senate said they were encouraged by talks with their Republican counterparts on gun legislation, but warned that any compromise would fall short of the steps they say are needed to curb gun fire. armed violence.
McConaughey said he visited the White House to try to make the moment a reality. However, his comments were expected to have little impact.
The actor, who met with lawmakers on Capitol Hill earlier in the day to discuss gun reform legislation, called on politicians to change the way they focus their work on statements that did not stand out. none of the parties. His comments, however, appeared to be aimed at Republicans in Congress who have opposed gun legislation.
“Let’s face it,” he said. “We can’t really be leaders if we only live for re-election.”