President Obama calls for common-sense steps that could reduce gun violence after deadly attack in Orlando

Photo Courtesy of whitehouse.gov
Photo Courtesy of whitehouse.gov

President Obama calls for common-sense steps that could reduce gun violence after deadly attack in Orlando

In a speech delivered last week following the deadly attack in Orlando, President Barack Obama called for common-sense steps that could reduce gun violence and reiterated the need for the Senate to confirm Adam Szubin, his nominee for Under Secretary of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence. The President said in his speech, “In continuing to push on this front, I want to mention that it is critical for our friends in the Senate to confirm Adam Szubin, my nominee for Under Secretary of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence. Adam has served in Democratic and Republican administrations.

Everyone agrees he’s eminently qualified. He has been working on these kinds of issues for years. It’s now been more than a year since I nominated him – more than 420 days -- and he still has not been given a full vote. There is no good reason for it. It is inexcusable. So it’s time for the Senate to do its job, put our national security first, and have a vote on Adam Szubin that can lead our financial fight against ISIL and help keep our country safe.

In response to presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump’s reaction to the Orlando mass shooting and his proposal to fight terrorism by temporarily banning Muslims from entering the U.S. the President added, “Are we going to start treating all Muslim Americans differently? Are we going to start subjecting them to special surveillance? Are we going to start discriminating against them because of their faith? We’ve heard these suggestions during the course of this campaign.

Do Republican officials actually agree with this? Because that’s not the America we want. It doesn’t reflect our democratic ideals. It won’t make us more safe; it will make us less safe.” -- fueling ISIL’s notion that the West hates Muslims, making young Muslims in this country and around the world feel like no matter what they do, they’re going to be under suspicion and under attack. It makes Muslim Americans feel like they’re government is betraying them. It betrays the very values America stands for.”

Photo Credit: The Photo Provided of President Obama is Courtesy of the White House

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