President Joe Biden signed an executive order on Tuesday that will ramp up the number of background checks conducted before gun sales.
The administration is touting the measure as bringing the U.S. as close as possible to universal background checks without Congress passing additional legislation, which would be unlikely given the stalemate on the issue in Congress.
"Again and again, [Biden] has called for Congress to act, including by banning assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, requiring background checks for all gun sales, requiring safe storage of firearms, closing the dating violence restraining order loophole, and repealing gun manufacturers’ immunity from liability," the White House said.
The order also calls on Congress to encourage greater use of so-called "red flag" laws, which allows members of the community to petition a court to determine whether an individual is dangerous and should be legally denied access to firearms.
The administration stressed that these laws are only effective when the public is aware of their existence and knows how to use them. Currently, 19 states and the District of Columbia have red flag laws on the books.
Finally, the White House is urging the Federal Trade Commission to issue a public report investigating whether and how gun manufacturers market firearms to minors.
Biden signed the order in Monterey Park, California, where a gunman recently killed 11 people and injured nine others.
Read the full executive order here.
Updated March 14, 2023 at 4:55 p.m. ET after Biden signed the executive order.
The Supreme Court has sidestepped a case against Google that might have allowed more lawsuits against social media companies.
News 12 reporter Tara Rosenblum sat down for an exclusive interview with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. who announced his campaign for the 2024 Democratic presidential nomination in April.
Montana has become the first state to enact a complete ban on TikTok. Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte signed the legislation Wednesday and it is scheduled to take effect next January.
The Supreme Court says that Illinois can, for now, keep in place a new law that bars the sale of certain semiautomatic guns and large-capacity magazines.
North Carolina's Republican-led House passed a 12-week abortion law, overriding Gov. Roy Cooper's veto.
Black people are disproportionately denied aid from state programs that reimburse victims of violent crime.
President Joe Biden is declaring he's confident the U.S. will avoid an unprecedented and potentially catastrophic debt default, saying talks with congressional Republicans have been productive.
Florida is banning gender affirming care for minors among a series of anti-LGBTQ+ bills signed by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis. DeSantis chose a Christian school Wednesday to sign the bills.
An unknown man managed to slip undetected inside the home of White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan, according to two people familiar with the incident. The U.S. Secret Service is investigating.
Legislation banning most abortions after 12 weeks of pregnancy is becoming law in North Carolina after the state’s Republican-controlled General Assembly successfully overrode the Democratic governor’s veto.
