Biden’s Plan to Tackle Gun Violence
Biden’s Call to Action
In response to the recent spike in homicides across the country, President Biden released an anti-crime strategy on Wednesday. Which aims to tackle rising gun violence by following a five part plan. It involves curbing the flow of firearms, by targeting illegal gun sales, distributing federal funds to local law enforcement for both personnel support, and investment in community violence intervention programs, expanding summer programming for teenagers, and assisting the reentry of formerly incarcerated individuals into society. Homicides have increased by 24% over last year, and gun-related deaths are up 21%. Officials believe that these numbers will only get worse as summer approaches.
Dual Party Issue
This call to action from The Administration comes amid a mounting national conversation regarding the spike in gun violence during the coronavirus pandemic. Republicans are blaming the rise in crime on activists call to limit police funding. However, the administration has conveyed that the recent surge in violence has been caused by the pandemic, which proceeded the Biden Administration. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters that “There’s been actually a rise in crime over the last five years, but really the last 18 months.”
While this rise in gun violence could be observed prior to Biden’s presidency, many Republicans have blamed the Administration for the recent increase. With the 2022 midterm elections quickly approaching, Democrats are expected to lose seats, which would leave Republicans in control of the House and Senate.
Historically, summer has always been when we observe a spike in gun violence. Brian Lemek, the executive director of BradyPac, the political arm of the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence, predicts this may be one of the most dangerous summers yet.
A Step in the Right Direction
Many are deeming this a historic policy, as well as a historic amount of funding. The plan aims to allocate $350 billion in federal funds to assist local law enforcement comes from the American Rescue Plan. Which is the $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package Biden signed in March.
The Administration can implement the plan on their own, since the money has already been taken in by Congress. However, long term gun control can only be achieved through policy changes from Congress. Currently there are two gun violence prevention bills that are currently at a standstill in the Senate after passing the House, since they lack the required 60 votes.
Image: Taken from video on The New York Times