Following high-profile meetings with retailers, gun control advocates, and pro-gun and hunting groups, Vice President Joe Biden said the Gun Violence Task Force will most likely recommend background checks for all gun buyers and a ban on high-capacity magazines as part of a plan to be given to President Barack Obama by next Tuesday.
The NRA said in a statement released shortly after the meeting that it was disappointed with the outcome of the meeting.
“We were disappointed with how little this meeting had to do with keeping our children safe and how much it had to do with an agenda to attack the Second Amendment. While claiming that no policy proposals would be “prejudged,” this task force spent most of its time on proposed restrictions on lawful firearms owners — honest, taxpaying, hardworking Americans. It is unfortunate that this Administration continues to insist on pushing failed solutions to our nation’s most pressing problems. We will not allow law-abiding gun owners to be blamed for the acts of criminals and madmen. Instead, we will now take our commitment and meaningful contributions to members of congress of both parties who are interested in having an honest conversation about what works — and what does not.”
The gun lobby said that it was prepared to discuss “school safety, mental health issues, the marketing of violence to our kids and the collapse of federal prosecutions of violent criminals.”
The meetings were scheduled by type of group and time, and were held at the White House. For instance the task force met with pro-gun groups like the National Rifle Association, being the biggest, and the National Shooting Sports Foundation at 1:15 p.m. eastern, and with retailers like Wal-Mart, Dick’s Sporting Goods and Bass Pro Shops two hours later. The task force plans to meet with the entertainment industry tonight.  (For the schedule and participants, click here).
President Obama will review the ideas, decide which ones he wants to keep and then announce “a package of actions and proposals,” the White House told Reuters.
Cover photo credit: White House
