On the third anniversary of the Parkland, Florida, high school school shooting, President Joe Biden on Sunday (Feb. 14) strongly urged Congress to introduce a stricter weapons and gun control bill, a move that the Texas attorney general said threatened to violate the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton wrote in a tweet, “The Parkland shooting 3 years ago was an unspeakable act of evil. But I cannot allow Democrats to use this tragedy as an opportunity to impose unhelpful, unconstitutional gun laws.”
“Biden cannot revoke the Second Amendment (rights) that Texas enjoys, on my watch.” Paxton said.
On Feb. 14, 2018, Nikolas Cruz, a 19-year-old man who attended Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, S.F., entered the campus armed with an AR-15 automatic rifle and began shooting at 2 p.m. At least 17 people were killed and 17 others were injured.
Biden took the opportunity Sunday to call on lawmakers to enact his “commonsense gun law reforms,” which include background checks on all gun sales, eliminating immunity for gun manufacturers, banning the manufacture and sale of assault weapons and high-capacity and buying back these weapons and magazines from citizens.
The proposal would regulate the possession of existing assault weapons under the National Firearms Act, with additional federal funding to enforce the laws.
In a statement, Biden said, “We owe it to all those who have died and to all the grieving survivors to make a difference. Now is the Time to act.”
White House press secretary Jen Psaki said authorities have met with gun control advocates and are ready to implement the “ambitious plan” Biden laid out during his campaign.
However, Parents in Parkland schools have been divided over gun control regulations.
Alaina, the daughter of Florida school board member Ryan Petty, who was killed in the shooting, was 14 years old when she died.
Petty tweeted to the president Sunday, “Mr. President, thank you for remembering a loved one who was taken from us 3 years ago, Alaina loved this country and the freedoms she guaranteed. Common sense tells us that honoring her Life does not require violating the rights of law-abiding citizens.”
In an interview, Petty noted that Biden’s suggestion would not prevent more tragedies.
“It’s wrong to focus on the weapons. It’s misguided for people who understand the events of that day. This was the most preventable school shooting in our nation’s history. The warning signs were there. It was clear that the killer had the intent to attack the school.” Petty said.
In an op-ed, John R. Lott Jr., former president of the Crime Prevention Research Center, argued that the rationale behind Biden’s gun control agenda is flawed and that far fewer than 1 percent of guns in the United States are used in crimes, suicides or accidents, and when they are, they are almost always the result of the user’s actions.
In contrast, other commercially available products are heavily used in crimes, including cars and computers. In terms of accidental deaths, it was swimming pools.
Lott said that even motorcycles are much more likely to cause injury than guns, with an average death rate of 0.05 percent per motorcycle; the death rate for guns is 0.008 percent, a figure that includes accidental deaths and suicides in addition to homicides.
“According to the FBI, the average gun is used defensively about 2 million times a year. Does the government reward gun manufacturers when their products are used to save lives?” Lott added.
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