JD Vance on Families & Children : Sep 9, 2024
FactCheck: School shootings are fact of life only in America

Are school shootings a "fact of life" everywhere? No, according to WorldPopulationReview.com--the United States leads the world by far, with 288 school shootings in the period 2009-2018. All other countries totaled 40 school shootings in that decade, meaning that the U.S. averaged one school shooting every two weeks, and all other countries, all combined, averaged one school shooting every three months for the entire rest of the world. Only 17 other countries had any school shootings at all, with Mexico's 8 school shootings a distant second to America's 288. In summary, school shootings ARE a fact of life in America, but not anywhere else in the world.

JD Vance on Families & Children : Sep 5, 2024
School shootings are a fact of life: harden security

Asked what can be done to stop school shootings, he said further restricting access to guns, as many Democrats advocate, won't end them, noting they happen in states with both lax and strict gun laws. He touted efforts in Congress to give schools more money for security.

"I don't like that this is a fact of life," Vance said. "But if you are a psycho and you want to make headlines, you realize that our schools are soft targets. And we have got to bolster security at our schools."

He called the shooting in Georgia an "awful tragedy," and said the families need prayers and sympathy.

Kamala Harris on Gun Control : Jun 18, 2024
#1 killer of kids: gun violence; not cancer; not accidents

Let's think about it in terms of the tragedy that gun violence in America is the number-one killer of the children of America--not car accidents, not cancer--gun violence. One in five Americans has a family member that was killed by gun violence. Gun violence--Black victims of gun violence--10 times more likely to be a victim of gun violence. So, it's a real issue that requires everybody's priority in terms of addressing it.

Kamala Harris on Gun Control : Jun 14, 2024
Common sense reform: immediately ban bump stocks

Unfortunately, today's Supreme Court ruling strikes down this important, commonsense regulation on devices that convert semiautomatic rifles into weapons that can fire hundreds of bullets per minute.

While the Supreme Court has once again rolled back progress, we will not allow the victims and survivors of 1 October to be forgotten. President Biden and I fought to pass the most significant gun safety legislation in nearly 30 years, but our work is not done. We are calling on Congress to immediately ban bump stocks. We do not have a moment to spare nor a life to spare.

Tim Walz on Gun Control : Mar 26, 2024
Students should worry about pop quizzes not mass shootings

Kamala Harris on Gun Control : Jan 18, 2024
Uvalde response: commonsense restrictions on weapons of war

With their help, President Biden and I fought to pass the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, the most significant gun safety law in nearly 30 years. [We also] established the first-ever White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention. But we know more must be done.

I am continuing to call on Congress and state legislators throughout America to have the courage to act by banning assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, passing red flag laws, and making background checks universal. These commonsense solutions will save lives and ensure that fewer children, families, and communities experience the trauma and pain that Uvalde has suffered.

Nikki Haley on Gun Control : Jan 4, 2024
For school shootings: more mental health; more security

We have to secure our schools the same ways that we secure our airports and our courthouses. And that means we make sure that we have whatever we need to, to make sure nothing comes through bullet-wise or otherwise. We need to have a security officer at the front of every school. We need to have one point of entry, no side or rear entries. And then, we need to make sure that we have someone on staff, a mental health counselor that does nothing but look to see which kids may be in crisis.

Mike Pence on Crime : Sep 27, 2023
Expedited death penalty for mass shooters

It is unconscionable that the Parkland shooter is actually going to spend the rest of his life behind bars in Florida. That's not justice. We have to mete out justice and send a message to these would-be killers that you are not going to live out your days behind bars. You're going to meet justice in the system.

Doug Burgum on Families & Children : Sep 27, 2023
Family and mental health are solution to mass shootings

BURGUM: The liberal left seems to be just completely bent on prosecuting law-abiding citizens that are gun owners. But strict gun laws [aren't] working. What we have to do is get back to the core issues about the family. We have to get back to behavioral health and mental health. We have got to get back to actually enforcing the laws, [instead of] defunding the police. The police have become the bad guys. Every time I see a policeman, the first thing I say is, "Thank you." And so does everybody else in my family and most of the people in our state, because they know we have to respect the people that are out there defending us every single day.

Vivek Ramaswamy on Families & Children : Aug 23, 2023
People are hungry for purpose and meaning

Gov. Chris CHRISTIE: The problem is that these prosecutors are refusing to do their job.

RAMASWAMY: We also have a mental health epidemic in this country. Over the same period that we have closed mental health institutions, we have seen a spike in violent crime. But, it's not just drugging up people in those psychiatric institutions with Zoloft and Seroquel. It's a deeper issue. I think faith-based approaches can play a role here, too. We're in the middle of a national identity crisis. And I say this as a member of my generation. The problem in our country right now, the reason we have that mental health epidemic is that people are so hungry for purpose and meaning, at a time when family, faith, patriotism, hard work have all disappeared. What we really need is a tonal reset from the top saying that this is what it means to be an American.

Chris Christie on Gun Control : Aug 23, 2023
Fight violent crime at federal level; fill federal prisons

CHRISTIE: I ran a United States Attorney's Office in a state where there is significant urban crime. And the problem is not going to be solved by more money. The problem is that these prosecutors in these localities, in the states, are refusing to do their job, and to arrest violent criminals. So, what a President Christie would do is appoint an Attorney General who would instruct each of the 93 US attorneys that they are to take over the prosecution of violent crime in every one of those cities that are failing to do so. We have plenty of room in the federal prisons to lock up these violent criminals and clean up what's going on all across this country in these individual cities.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Gun Control : Jun 24, 2023
Mass shootings linked to antidepressants & video games

Joe Biden on Gun Control : Feb 7, 2023
Ban assault weapons once and for all; we did it before

Chase Oliver on Gun Control : Oct 18, 2022
Pink Pistols: no red flag laws; no gun confiscation

A: I'm a proud gun owner and I respect the 2nd Amendment. A lot of gun laws in this country come from a place of historical oppression and, frankly, racism and bigotry. I think people should have the right to defend themselves if they so choose. Now, how do we address gun violence? The truth is, we've always had guns in this country. You're not going to address gun violence [by] gun confiscation or passing unconstitutional red flag laws that do away with people's due process. The way we address gun violence is we have to address the culture of violence in our society, and that's not something you can do with a piece of legislation. At the end of the day, I'm not going to support red flag laws; I'm not going to support gun confiscation. I'm going to stand up for people's right to defend themselves. I'm a member of the Pink Pistols: armed gays are harder to oppress and they're harder to bash.

Joe Biden on Gun Control : Nov 4, 2021
Close loopholes in Federal gun background check system

Bernie Sanders on Gun Control : Feb 7, 2020
Changed views on gun control due to epidemic of gun violence

Bernie Sanders on Government Reform : Sep 12, 2019
Keep filibuster and use other ways to pass laws

WARREN: The mass shootings are terrible, but they get all the headlines. We have a gun violence problem. The question is when 90 percent of Americans want to see us do background checks, want to get assault weapons off the streets, why doesn't it happen? The answer is corruption. We have a Congress that is beholden to the gun industry. Unless we're willing to roll back the filibuster, we're not going to get anything done on guns.

Q: Senator Sanders, you've said if Donald Trump supports ending the filibuster, you should be nervous. Would you support ending the filibuster?

SANDERS: No. But what I would support is passing major legislation, the gun legislation, Medicare for all, climate change legislation that saves the planet. I will not wait for 60 votes to make that happen, and you can do it in a variety of ways. You can do that through budget reconciliation law.

Bernie Sanders on Government Reform : Sep 12, 2019
Keep filibuster and use other ways to pass laws

WARREN: The mass shootings are terrible, but they get all the headlines. We have a gun violence problem. The question is when 90 percent of Americans want to see us do background checks, want to get assault weapons off the streets, why doesn't it happen? The answer is corruption. We have a Congress that is beholden to the gun industry. Unless we're willing to roll back the filibuster, we're not going to get anything done on guns.

Q: Senator Sanders, you've said if Donald Trump supports ending the filibuster, you should be nervous. Would you support ending the filibuster?

SANDERS: No. But what I would support is passing major legislation, the gun legislation, Medicare for all, climate change legislation that saves the planet. I will not wait for 60 votes to make that happen, and you can do it in a variety of ways. You can do that through budget reconciliation law.

Kamala Harris on Gun Control : Sep 12, 2019
Trump didn't pull trigger, but he tweeted out the ammunition

I was talking about this at one of my town halls, and-and this child who was eight years old came up to me--it was like it was a secret between the two of us, and he tugged on my jacket and he said, "I had to have one of those drills." It is traumatizing our children.

In El Paso [after a recent mass shooting] they said, "Well, do you think Trump is responsible for what happened?" And I said, "Well, look, I mean, obviously, he didn't pull the trigger, but he's certainly been tweeting out the ammunition."

Ron DeSantis on Gun Control : Aug 31, 2018
Allow carrying guns openly and on college campuses

He has also criticized the gun control measures in the bill passed by lawmakers in response to the Feb. 14 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland. The legislation banned rifle sales to those under 21, prohibited bump stocks and placed a three-day waiting period on all gun sales.

[Democratic gubernatorial opponent Andrew] Gillum called for a series of gun-control measures after the Parkland massacre, including a ban on assault weapons, limiting the size of magazines, banning armor-piercing bullets and prohibiting guns to those with domestic violence felonies or misdemeanors. The National Rifle Association has given DeSantis an A- grade and Gillum an F.

Bernie Sanders on Gun Control : May 20, 2018
To pass gun controls, Congress needs guts to stand up to NRA

SANDERS: It is unspeakable to see that kids go to a place where they should feel safe, where they can focus on learning, are now worrying.

Q: Have you guys done enough in the Senate?

SANDERS: Of course not! But the American people are united, overwhelmingly, on common sense gun safety legislation. Expand background checks, do away with the gun show loopholes--

Q: If they are, how come this stuff doesn't ever pass?

SANDERS: It's a three-letter word, it's the N-R-A! And it's Trump and the Republicans who don't have the guts to stand up to these people, and that's pretty pathetic. You got a Congress dominated by the NRA, and all the right-wing organizations, and that is enormously unfair to the kids in these high schools, and the American people in general.

Donald Trump on Gun Control : Mar 9, 2018
Arm public school employees to prevent school shootings

Florida now joins six other states-GA, KS, SD, TN, TX, and WY--with laws allowing public school employees to carry firearms to work. President Donald Trump has voiced support for the idea, also espoused by the NRA.

Critics have said arming school staff only heightens the risks of gun violence, and poses a particular risk to minority students, who they said were more likely to be shot in the heat of a disciplinary situation or if mistaken as an intruder.

Scott said he remained dissatisfied with the guardian provisions but signed the bill nonetheless, saying it would enhance school safety overall. "I am glad, however, that the plan in this bill is not mandatory, which means it will be up to locally elected officials," Scott said.

Donald Trump on Gun Control : Mar 9, 2018
Opposes arming school teachers against school shootings

Critics have said arming school staff only heightens the risks of gun violence, and poses a particular risk to minority students, who they said were more likely to be shot in the heat of a disciplinary situation or if mistaken as an intruder.

Scott said he remained dissatisfied with the guardian provisions but signed the bill nonetheless, saying it would enhance school safety overall. "I am glad, however, that the plan in this bill is not mandatory, which means it will be up to locally elected officials," Scott said.

Bernie Sanders on Gun Control : Feb 16, 2018
Applaud students taking action to prevent school shootings

While there may not be any guaranteed answers as to how we end mass shootings, that does not mean that we should not be doing everything possible to prevent them. We need action. While the American people are divided over various aspects of gun control, the more important truth is that there is now widespread & growing agreement on a variety of actions that would almost certainly lower the level of gun violence in this country.

Bernie Sanders on Gun Control : Nov 15, 2016
Intervene with mental illness, to prevent mass shootings

In my view, there are very concrete steps we can take to lessen the number of tragedies and to make those that happen less lethal, including ideas supported by a majority of gun owners:
• We must strengthen and better enforce the instant background check system.
• We must close the gun-show loophole, which allows unlicensed dealers to sell guns to people who otherwise would not be able to get them.
• We must make "straw man" purchases a federal crime.
• We must ban semiautomatic assault weapons, which are designed strictly for killing human beings.
• We must recognize that our mental health system is seriously broken. It's past time for a serious discussion about identifying, intervening, and treating mental illness.

Bernie Sanders on Gun Control : Apr 7, 2016
Ok to sue gun manufacturers if they sell for misuse

Clinton is attacking Sanders for refusing to support the Sandy Hook victims in their lawsuit against gun manufacturers. The reason Sanders opposes the lawsuit because he believes a gun manufacturer should not be criminalized for selling a product which is legal to sell to people. But Sanders would support the victims if they could prove the gun manufacturer knew the person they were selling a weapon to would misuse the weapon, like massacre people with it.

Bernie Sanders on Gun Control : Oct 13, 2015
I want to shield gun shops from lawsuits, not manufacturers

SANDERS: Of course not. This was a large and complicated bill. There were provisions in it that I think made sense. For example, do I think that a gun shop in the state of Vermont that sells legally a gun to somebody, and that somebody goes out and does something crazy, that that gun shop owner should be held responsible? I don't. On the other hand, where you have manufacturers and where you have gun shops knowingly giving guns to criminals or aiding and abetting that, of course we should take action.

CLINTON: Senator Sanders did vote for this immunity provision. I voted against it. I was in the Senate at the same time. It wasn't that complicated to me. It was pretty straightforward that he was going to give immunity to the only industry in America. Everybody else has to be accountable, but not the gun manufacturers.

Donald Trump on Gun Control : Oct 4, 2015
Mental health more important than gun control

Q: What's your explanation?

TRUMP: They're just sick people. They are mentally imbalanced.

Q: Do you think we have more mentally ill people than other countries?

TRUMP: I think what we have is I think we have copycats. I think they watch it and they see it here maybe more than other places.

Donald Trump on Gun Control : Oct 4, 2015
Gun violence is inevitable; regulations won't help

TRUMP: No matter what you'll do you have people that are mentally ill and they have problems and they're going to slip through the cracks.

Q: So no new gun laws?

TRUMP: Well, the gun laws have nothing to do with this. This isn't guns. This is about mental illness. You're always going to have difficulties, no matter how tight you run it. Even if you had great education having to do with mental illness, you educate the community, still you're going to have people that slip through the cracks. And these people are more than slipping through the cracks.

Chris Christie on Gun Control : Jun 30, 2015
Include mental health records in gun background checks

Jill Stein on Gun Control : Dec 15, 2013
Australian gun restrictions stopped mass shootings

Stein argues that the US should look to other countries such as Australia, which is just as much of a gun culture as America, when searching for great examples of dealing with the issue of gun control: "In 1995 when they passed limits on automatic weapons [implemented] background checks, and actually did a buyback of dangerous automatic and semiautomatic weapons--they have not had a single mass shooting ever since. And the rates of ordinary gun violence dropped by half. They have saved $500 billion per year. It has not been a slippery slope in Australia."

Joe Biden on Families & Children : Mar 13, 2013
$2.3M in grants to help reduce domestic violence homicides

In total, the Department of Justice will award $2.3 million to twelve sites across the country as part of the new Domestic Violence Homicide Prevention Demonstration Initiative (DVHP Initiative). "Every single day in America, three women die at the hands of their boyfriend, or their husband, or their ex-husband. Many of these women have been threatened or severely abused in the past. We know what risk factors put someone in greater danger of being killed by the person they love--and that also means we have the opportunity to step in and try to prevent these murders. That's why these grants are so important. They'll help stop violence before it turns deadly," said Vice President Biden.

Tim Scott on Gun Control : Dec 23, 2012
Don't rush to judgment on gun control after school shootings

SCOTT: To rush to judgment, I think, is a bit premature on what we should do. We should take a very serious look at whatever it takes to keep our kids safe at school. We don't know what that is yet.

Q: But would you be in favor of changing some laws, like, for example, banning these assault weapons?

SCOTT: I would love to see what comes out of the committee [which Obama has just appointed], with Vice President Biden putting together a holistic approach, looking at the opportunities to seriously address all the issues of mental illness to other issues, understanding what happened and why. After we have those answers, we'll be in a much better position to decide the path forward.