Biden announces new executive actions on gun control

A proud gun owner, Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia applauded President Biden's executive actions Thursday, arguing that they went further than just working around the fringes.

He wouldn't commit, however, to supporting a House-passed background check bill that could come to the floor when the Senate returns next week.

Asked if there have been any negotiations over the House legislation, Manchin said, "We haven't gotten a bill yet, no we haven't. I'm happy to work with them, sit down and we just call it common gun sense."

Manchin said that he has an open line of communication with the White House, and a good relationship with Biden.

"They've been very, very kind in talking. We do talk, we have communications as often as I would like and as often as they would like." Of Biden specifically, he said, "Whenever he calls me, he calls and then we have a good conversation. We've had a good friendship and relationship for a long time. We understand each other.

The executive actions President Biden announced today — which he repeatedly argued do nothing to impinge on the Second Amendment right to bear arms — include efforts to restrict weapons known as "ghost guns."

They are handmade or self-assembled firearms that don't have serial numbers. Some can be fabricated in as little as 30 minutes using kits and individual parts purchased online that do not require a background check, meaning they can essentially be bought by anyone.

Biden directed the Justice Department to issue a proposed rule to "stop the proliferation" of those weapons, though a senior administration official previewing the step declined to elaborate on how specifically the rule — due in 30 days — might work.

The President said that he wants these kits to be treated as firearms under the Gun Control Act. Under the act, Biden said, the key parts of these gun making kits would be required to have serial numbers, so they can be traced. The act would also require background checks for people purchasing kits.

Another proposed rule would target stabilizing braces for pistols, which aid in the weapons' accuracy and manage recoil.

Under the new rule, the devices — which the senior administration official contended turn pistols into short barreled rifles — would be covered by regulations in the National Firearms Act, including requiring registration. Last month's mass shooter in Boulder, Colorado, used a pistol modified with an arm brace, according to a law enforcement source.

Biden also announced:

Taken together, the actions amount to the first real steps by Biden's administration to combat gun violence. The moves are limited in scope and fall short of the steps Biden has vowed to pressure Congress to take. Still, they fulfilled his pledge last month to take "common-sense" steps on his own.

Biden made the announcements Thursday from the Rose Garden alongside his attorney general, Merrick Garland, whose Justice Department will be responsible for drafting the proposed rules.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer applauded President Biden's "critical" actions today to address gun violence, but said the moves "are not a substitute for meaningful legislation to address the gun violence epidemic."

The Democratic leader reiterated that he plans to hold votes on the Senate floor on gun violence prevention legislation. The House passed two bills last month that expand background checks, and the legislation faces an uphill climb ahead in the Senate to garner the 60 votes needed to pass.

Schumer also said he looks forward to the Senate "quickly processing and confirming the president’s superbly-qualified nominee to head the ATF.”

In his White House remarks today, Biden called on Congress to pass new background check laws, including closing the gun show and Charleston loopholes; to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act that he worked to pass a senator; and renew a ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines.

"They can do it right now. They’ve offered plenty of thoughts and prayers, members of Congress, but they have passed not a single new federal law to reduce gun violence," Biden said.

"Enough prayers," he went on, "time for some action."

The Biden administration’s announcements on gun safety earlier in the day marked an initial first step, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Thursday, adding that “there will be more” the administration will do to address the issue.

Psaki was asked during Thursday’s press briefing whether President Biden feels he’s doing everything he can to meet the scope of his commitments on gun safety measures.

She responded, “Well today the administration announced initial actions to address gun violence. There will be more. That is absolutely his commitment. And he also will use the power of his presidency, his voice, his political will, to advocate for actions in Congress.”

Psaki also underscored the role advocates play in influencing state gun laws.

“He will remain engaged with those groups and those leaders as well, and he will work on this through many levers,” she added.

President Biden said stripping gun manufacturers of liability protection would be at the top of his list of legislative priorities on gun control.

The item was one in a list of actions Biden said Congress must take to combat gun violence. But he said it could potentially have an outsized effect.

"If I get one thing on my list, the Lord came down and said, ‘Joe you get one of these, give me that one,'" he said. "I’ll tell you what, there would be a come to the Lord moment these folks would have real quickly."

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Attorney General Merrick Garland outlined five ways the Department of Justice will work to combat gun violence:

The attorney general noted that the Department of Justice cannot solve the problem of gun violence alone, and he called for a "collective effort" to save lives.

President Biden said he’d “use all the resources at my disposal as President to keep the American people safe from gun violence,” but pushed Congress to pass further legislation.

"They can do it right now. They’ve offered plenty of thoughts and prayers, members of Congress, but they have passed not a single new federal law to reduce gun violence," he said. 

Biden conceded that the issue of gun control was a "difficult one" and that, to ordinary Americans, can make it seem "like our entire political process is broken."

Still, he encouraged the Senate to immediately pass House-passed bills to close gun loopholes and expand background checks.

Biden also called on Congress to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act that he worked to pass a senator and renew a ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines.

The President said that reducing gun violence in the US would save money for the country, claiming that it is estimated to cost $280 billion a year. 

“For a fraction of the cost of gun violence, we can save lives, create safe and healthy communities, and build economies that work for all of us,” he said. 

Throughout his remarks, Biden insisted that his steps would not impinge upon the Second Amendment right to bear arms.

"No amendment to the Constitution is absolute," he said. "From the very beginning, you couldn’t own any weapon you wanted to own."

President Biden announced today that he is nominating gun control advocate David Chipman to lead the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, which hasn't had a permanent director in place since 2015.

Biden said Chipman knows the agency "well" having served there for 25 years.

If confirmed, Chipman will lead the agency that enforces gun laws at a critical point in Biden's early tenure, as the President looks to take fresh action on the issue in the wake of two deadly shootings last month.

While at the ATF, he "disrupted firearms trafficking operations in Virginia that were supplying illegal guns to New York City, served as a member of ATF's version of SWAT, and was named the Special Agent in Charge of ATF's Firearms Programs," according to his bio on the website for Giffords.

He currently serves as a senior policy adviser at the organization led by former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords, who became a gun control advocate after being shot in 2011

She praised Chipman as "the perfect choice" for director in a statement Wednesday.

Chipman, a Detroit native, received an undergraduate degree from American University and a master's degree in management from Johns Hopkins University.

President Biden said he wants to see a national "red flag" law and legislation to incentivize states to enact their own "red flag" laws.

During his remarks on gun reform at the White House, the President announced that he has instructed the Justice Department to publish a "model red flag" legislation so states can start "crafting their own laws now."

Biden explained the benefits of having "red flag" laws and how they ultimately can prevent shootings from happening.

Biden noted how "more than half of all suicides" involved the use of a firearm, but if a gun is not available the death rate for attempted suicide drops "precipitously."

"States that have red flag laws have seen, and see, the reduction in the number of suicides in their states. Every single month," he said.

Biden also noted how "red flag" laws can help protect people from domestic violence situations and prevent mass shootings.

"We know red flag laws can have significant effect in protecting women from domestic violence and we know red flag laws can stop mass shooters before they can act out their violent plans," the President explained.

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