WHITE HOUSE —
President Barack Obama will announce Wednesday his plans for reducing gun violence in the United States. Some of the proposals will face stiff opposition from Republicans.
About one month after a gunman killed 20 children and six adults at an elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut, President Obama will present his plan to prevent such a tragedy from happening again.
The president will announce his proposals in the presence of children who have written to him to express their concern about school violence after the Newtown rampage.
Obama’s plan is based on recommendations from Vice President Joe Biden, whom he appointed to study the issue and meet with numerous groups on all sides.
White House press secretary Jay Carney Tuesday said several of the main components of the plan will require approval from Congress.
“There are specific legislative actions that he will continue to call on Congress to take, including the assault weapons ban, including a measure to ban high capacity magazine clips, including an effort to close the very big loopholes in the background check system," he said.
Some of those actions will be difficult to pass in the Republican-led House of Representatives. The National Rifle Association has said it will fight any legislation to limit access to guns and ammunition.
Carney said the president does not expect that any plan he implements will eliminate gun violence, but he believes the problem can be sharply curtailed.
“Our goal, obviously, should be, as a country, should be, never to accept even one child’s death as a result of gun violence. He believes that the things we can do as a nation, together in a bipartisan way when it comes to legislation, together outside of Washington, that, yes, we can reduce gun violence," he said.
The president may use executive orders to enact some other parts of the plan. Some House Democrats say Biden has identified 19 potential actions Obama could take without legislation.
The vice president is believed to have recommended tougher penalties for people who lie on background checks for gun buyers. He also is said to have suggested raising gun trafficking to a felony, as well as other steps.
Obama’s proposals are expected to include recommendations to address violence in entertainment and video games.
Despite the expected legislative battle over gun control, many Americans are demanding action from Washington on the issue.
On Monday, one month after the attack at Sandy Hook Elementary School, the mothers of the children killed announced plans to campaign for change.
State lawmakers in New York Tuesday were in the process of passing the nation’s toughest gun control law, which contains some of the same provisions that are expected to be in Obama’s plan.
