Editorial from the Baltimore Sun editorial board
What if Ahmad Al Aliwi Alissa had never gotten his hands on the military-style assault weapon he likely used in a murderous shooting spree this week at a Boulder, Colo., grocery store that killed 10 people, including a police officer who left seven children behind? The Ruger AR-556 pistol was one of two guns found near Alissa when police apprehended him.
Perhaps if the 21-year-old, who has been charged with 10 counts of first-degree murder, had not been able to buy the weapon six days earlier, we as a country wouldn’t be mourning the second mass shooting inside of a week.
We can’t say it enough: It shouldn’t be simple to buy a gun in America; they are weapons designed to kill, and with their ownership comes a great level of responsibility.
President Joe Biden demanded Tuesday that Congress once and for all ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines.
It is time Congress stop letting the NRA and supposed gun rights activists hold them hostage and twist a real need for gun safety into a false argument about abolishing the Second Amendment.
If Congress isn’t prepared to take a strong stance, the White House has signaled it is. The Biden administration is exploring taking executive action, making sure it passes legal muster, to bypass another potential stalemate and get quick action on the gun restrictions the country so desperately needs.
