Many people are not waiting for the government to decide on the matter of gun control, a cross-nation report indicates that guy buy-back programs have become increasingly popular, particularly after the Newtown, Connecticut elementary school shooting.
According to a NBC News report, "Gun buybacks are proving so popular that U.S. Rep. Gerald Connolly, D-Va., and Ted Deutch, D-Fla., have Congress to set aside $200 million for gun buyback programs, saying that amount could remove 'one million guns from our streets.'
Antonio Villaraigosa, Los Angeles mayor, told Marketplace.org, "People said, 'I don't want to wait on the Congress. I'm tired of the endless debates about responsible gun control legislation. I want to do my part."
The issue of gun-control finds itself once again at the center of a national debate after the Sandy Hook incident, followed by the New York Fighter ambush incident.
In a speech in Newton on Sunday President Obama said on the issue of gun-control , "no single law, no set of laws can eliminate evil from the world, or prevent every senseless act of violence in our society. But that can't be an excuse for inaction. Surely, we can do better than this," as reported by CNN News.
The president has handed over responsibility of the matter to Vice President Joe Biden, a wise decision as many analyst predict if anyone can spearhead the debate of federal gun-control legislation in congress, it's Vice President Biden, particularly because of his track-record on the subject during his reign as senator.
In 1988, Biden introduced a Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act, which took nearly six year to pass through congress, which it did in 1994. In 2007, Biden looked to pass the Crime Control and Prevention Act. Both of these legislations deal with federal gun-control and also seek to strengthen background checks on purchases of weapons as well as stricter mental health assessment of those who purchase weapons.
Senator Diane Feinstein, judiciary committee chair, also announced that she would work to create an legislation that would ban assault weapons.
According to the White House Press Secretary Jay Carney, the president will support Feinstein's efforts.
Carney said, "the president would consider limits on high-capacity magazines and would back efforts to prevent people from buying guns through unlicensed dealers without a background check," as reported by the Wall Street Journal.
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