As Biden signs gun bill into law, politicians seek to turn it into 2022 campaign issue
ST. PAUL, Minn. -- President Joe Biden is calling a new bipartisan law meant to reduce gun violence "real progress." The newly passed bill toughens requirements for young people to buy guns. It also denies firearms to domestic abusers.
"Because of your work, your advocacy, your courage, lives will be saved today and tomorrow," Biden said.
Even so, the Biden administration says more needs to be done. That same message is being echoed in Minnesota.
At the White House, Biden told mayors from around the country that his efforts to advance gun control measures is just beginning. In the crowd was St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter, who took a selfie with other mayors, saying on Twitter "we have a long way to go" when it comes to enacting gun control measures.
From the White House on down, Democrats are putting gun violence and the push for more restrictions front and center as they frame the debate for the 2022 November election. Republicans say Democrats are just trying to use the gun issue to distract from soaring inflation and the economy, and that when it comes to guns, Democrats are wrong.
Like many Republicans, Jim Schultz -- the party's nominee for Minnesota attorney general -- says it's a lack of enforcement that's to blame for soaring violent crime.
"Right now about 40% of gun crimes receive less than the mandatory minimum required by law," Schultz said. "It's thanks to prosecutors, it's thanks to judges. We cant have that."
Schultz is running in the Aug. 9 Republican primary for attorney general against Doug Wardlow and Sharon Anderson.
DFL Attorney General Keith Ellison has long campaigned for tougher gun restrictions. After a roundtable on gun violence that included Rep. Betty McCollum, Ellison says the public wants tougher gun control measures like an assault weapons ban.
"You cannot have a serious conversation about public safety and exclude a dialogue about guns," Ellison said.
