When President Joe Biden landed in Southern California Monday as part of a two-day swing through the region, he stepped foot in a state deemed to have the strongest gun safety laws in the nation.
But Biden is visiting Monterey Park today, almost exactly two months after a gunman killed 11 people at a dance studio. There, Biden will express his condolences and support to a community still reeling from the attack and will tout a new executive order his administration says will reduce gun violence.
The executive order, unveiled Tuesday, March 14, instructs the attorney general to ensure gun sellers are conducting background checks as required under law and clarify just who can be “engaged in the business” of dealing firearms. These efforts will ensure fewer guns will be obtained by felons or domestic abusers, senior administration officials told reporters Monday.
Additionally, Biden’s executive order seeks to improve federal support for families, first responders and communities after a mass shooting. Pointing to FEMA responses to natural disasters, senior administration officials said Biden wants to see greater coordination among federal agencies to provide short and long-term aid, such as mental health or financial resources, to communities grappling with mass shootings.
“The reality is that our children are suffering, and I know it may not be in our lifetime, but we must do something to eradicate just how easy and accessible these guns are to our children and to people who shouldn’t have guns,” said Sen. Susan Rubio, D-Baldwin Park.
California has been “very aggressive in trying to pass legislation that protects Californians,” Rubio said, adding that she hopes the federal government is “on the same page to find the urgency and desire to pass sensible gun reform.”
In Monterey Park, the gunman used a semi-automatic handgun that was purchased in Monterey Park but not registered in California, authorities said. Investigators found hundreds of…
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