Joe Biden urged to do more to address gun violence

With following the tragic school shootings in recent years, US President Joe Biden has pushed for gun reforms. However, gun control advocates have recently urged the US leader to do more in addressing gun violence.

The Associated Press reports families and gun control advocates are pressing Biden to do more in addressing gun violence. This comes as this week marks the fourth anniversary of the school shooting in Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, where 17 students and staff were killed.

Protesters also demonstrated near the White House. One of them, the father of one of the victims, scaled a crane across the street from the White House, unfolding a sign that had a photo of his son and criticized Biden for the number of deaths by shooting since taking office in January last year. The father, Manuel Oliver, also tweeted a video saying that he asked to meet Biden a month ago, but the meeting never happened.

Oliver’s efforts were to raise awareness for gun violence along with a website that kept count of all the gun deaths, including suicides, as well as people who were injured and the mass shootings that took place since Biden took office. The site also encourages users to call on the Biden administration and Congress to act.

Biden has made efforts to pass legislation to implement strict gun laws that have been predictably met with Republican opposition. The US leader was also forced to withdraw his nominee for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.

The gun-control group Guns Down America is now calling on Biden to establish a national office to address gun violence and nominate a new candidate to lead the ATF.

In other related news, Biden spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin over the weekend in another effort to defuse the tensions in Eastern Europe as tens of thousands of Russian troops remain stationed at the borders near Ukraine. Biden has also warned Americans who are in Ukraine to leave immediately, with other countries doing the same.

The efforts by Biden and other Western nations have also led to Russia criticizing the West for trying to escalate the situation. The US has warned that with the number of Russian forces at the borders, an invasion may be inevitable and could take place at any time.