U.S. President Joe Biden has been confronted by a distressed crowd chanting specific actions as he tried to comfort families in the city of Uvalde, South Texas, on Sunday after the deadliest school shooting in the country. a decade.
Key points:
- The Biden visited memorials at the site of the mass shooting that killed 19 students and two teachers
- The couple will meet with the families of the victims and the survivors, and later meet with the first perpetrators.
- This is Mr Biden’s third presidential visit to a mass shooting site
President and First Lady Jill Biden wiped away tears as they visited the memorials at Robb Elementary School where the gunman killed 19 students and two teachers, placing white roses and showing respect in makeshift shrines.
“Do something,” a crowd sang outside the Sacred Heart Catholic Church as Mr. Biden left after attending Mass.
“We will,” he replied.
The Biden are also visiting the families of the victims and survivors for several hours before later meeting with the first perpetrators.
Uvalde’s shooting has once again put gun control at the top of the country’s agenda, just months before the November midterm elections, with supporters of stronger arms laws arguing that the latest spill of blood represents a turning point.
Biden, a Democrat, has repeatedly called for major reforms to U.S. gun laws, but has been powerless to stop mass shootings or convince Republicans that tighter controls could curb carnage.
The presidential limousine passes by a memorial site in the town square of Uvalde on the way to Robb Primary School. (AP: Wong Maye-E)
‘We need help’
The visit to Texas is Mr. Biden’s third presidential trip to a mass shooting site.
Earlier this month he visited Buffalo, New York, after a gunman killed 10 black people in a Saturday afternoon attack on a grocery store.
Mr Biden was accompanied on Sunday by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican who opposes the new gun restrictions, and other local officials.
“We need help, Governor Abbott,” some of the crowd shouted as Mr. Biden arrived at the school. “You’re ashamed, Abbott.”
Others shouted thanks to Mr. Biden when he arrived at the school.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott was frightened during his visit to the Robb Elementary School monument. (Reuters: Jonathan Ernst)
Asked if she had a message for the president, 11-year-old Bella Barboza, who was a friend of one of the victims, said she was now afraid to go to school and urged change.
“This world is not a good place for kids to grow up,” he said.
Ben Gonzalez, a lifelong resident of Uvalde and the father of four children, was at the school’s memorial site on Sunday and asked leaders to help and said Democrats and Republicans should work together.
“Yes, we need new gun laws. But we also need to focus on mental health. There is no single answer to this problem,” he said.
“We have to be realistic”
White House aides and close allies have said Biden is unlikely to go into specific policy proposals or take executive action on firearms to avoid disrupting delicate negotiations in the divided Senate.
Democrats in the Senate also downplayed the rhetoric as negotiations continued during the House Memorial Day holiday break this week.
“We have to be realistic about what we can achieve,” Senate President Dick Durbin told CNN.
Durbin’s fellow Democrats narrowly control the 50-50 Senate, but need 60 votes to pass a majority of the legislation.
Leading Republicans such as Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, President Donald Trump and Mr. Abbott have rejected calls for new gun control measures and suggested investing in mental health care or strengthening school security. .
The shooter had no criminal record or a history of mental illness.
Reuters
Posted 56 minutes ago 56 minutes ago dig. May 29, 2022 at 10:07 pm, updated 31 minutes ago 31 minutes ago dig. May 29, 2022 at 10:32 p.m.