NEWTOWN–It’s been three years since 26 lives were taken way too soon.
On December 14, 2012, a lone gunman entered Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown and shot and killed 20 first-graders, the school’s principal, two teacher’s aides, two teachers and the school psychologist.
On Monday, in honor of those who lost their lives, President Barack Obama issued a statement on his official Facebook page about the tragedy and the continued need to take action against guns, something the president says we have not taken enough action on.
The president said, “Three years on, how do we tell [the victims’ families] that their Congress hasn’t done anything to prevent what happened to them from happening to other families?”
The president commended Gov. Dan Malloy’s action after the shootings to pass common sense gun laws, “reforms that didn’t infringe upon anyone’s right to bear arms, but actually might have prevented another massacre in the meantime,” the president said.
Yet he said he was disappointed about how little has been done to change gun laws on a national scale. “Even though background checks were supported by some 90% of the American people and a majority of NRA households, the Senate surrendered, voting to block those background checks – even with the families of Newtown in attendance.”
The president even addressed a common response from those who oppose stricter gun laws; that criminals would still get their hands on guns and commit crimes, and that more laws would only impact responsible, law-abiding gun owners.
“But what if we tried to stop even one?” the president said. “What if Congress did something – anything – to save one American, or a classroom of Americans, or a stadium’s worth of Americans from losing their lives to gun violence in the years to come?”
Among other topics the president touched on, including the recent massacre in San Bernardino, California, he also reiterated that he supports protecting our Second Amendment rights to the fullest extent, but that it’s important to also protect individuals from gun violence.
“Let me be absolutely clear – like I’ve said many times before, I believe that the Second Amendment guarantees an individual right to bear arms. Period. No matter how many times people try to paint me as holding a different position. I also believe that most gun owners agree that we can respect the Second Amendment while keeping an irresponsible, law-breaking few from inflicting harm on a massive scale.”
You can read the president’s full statement below:
