“The U.S. political system appeared to throw in the towel on any further legislative steps to tackle gun violence,” said a recent opinion article carried by The Irish Times, a daily newspaper in Ireland, citing a high-profile shooting incident that occurred last week.
On March 27, six people, including three children, were killed in a school shooting in Nashville, Tennessee.
“Up to the end of March, there have been 131 mass shooting incidents in the United States, according to the Gun Violence Archive,” the article said. “There have been more than 10,200 gun deaths overall — although more than half of these were cases of suicide.”
In the aftermath of the Nashville incident, U.S. President Joe Biden “gave a remarkably candid assessment that he was powerless to do any more on gun control,” the article said.
It said that “throughout his time in the White House, the president has been pushing for the introduction of a ban on assault weapons … but the measures he pushed for never went far enough.”
“Up to the start of this year, Democrats controlled the White House and both chambers in the Congress, but it was not enough to overcome Republican opposition to stricter gun control measures. Now with the Republicans in charge in the House of Representatives, the hill to climb to secure further gun control measures has become steeper.”
“Biden, who himself owns two shotguns, again urged Congress last week to pass additional controls on what he describes as weapons of war being used on the streets or in schools. However, such comments now appear to be more in hope than expectation,” the opinion article said.
“The politicians will talk about thoughts and prayers and the president will once more call for a ban on high-powered weapons. Time will move on, as will the attention of the media. Families will be left to grieve, and the depressing cycle will continue,” it said.
