Whatcom County residents shared their thoughts on President Barack Obama’s announcement Tuesday, Jan. 5, to expand and bolster background checks for gun buyers and to push for smart technology to improve gun safety. These actions will help make our country safer without infringing on the rights of law-abiding owners of firearms.
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President Obama said he will streamline reporting mental health information that could exclude you from getting a firearm.
The family members of gun violence victims flanked Obama on the stage, including Lucy McBath, mother of Jordan Davis and Jennifer Pinckney, the wife of the late Rev. Clementa Pinckney who died in the AME massacre last summer.
On Tuesday, the president had cried while talking about children who died in places like Newtown, Connecticut and Chicago due to gun violence. “When we wrote the laws on background checks, we didn’t know gun shows would become a major loophole”.
To buy a long gun, like a shotgun or rifle, you must be 18 years old, have a valid driver’s license with a picture and pass a background check, usually run by the store owner. Pine Tree Pistol Club hosts many gun shows throughout the year, and their Weston says they follow strict guidelines when people purchase pistols at their shows.
“I think he’s incorrect about it. They’re just taking chunks and chunks out of the Second Amendment”, he said. While Goddard applauded the president for adding more ATF agents, FBI investigators, and investing in smart gun technology, he said the president’s effort to expand background checks fell short. “I don’t think it’s going to do anything to reduce crime or violence”. Some of them will stop, because out of caution, they won’t want to be investigated or harassed. “If they were going to protect people, then the cities and the states that have the most onerous gun laws wouldn’t be the ones with the highest murder rates”.
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“I don’t have a problem with more screening, especially with mental health patients”, patron Kevin Wartick said.
