Joe Biden called the shooting a new horrific reminder of the gun violence that is tearing communities apart
Washington:
President Joe Biden expressed his condolences to the victims of a school shooting in Georgia and called on Republicans to work with Democrats in Congress to pass gun safety legislation to prevent future gun violence in the United States.
At least four people, including two students, were killed and nine others were injured when a fellow student opened fire at a high school in the US state of Georgia on Wednesday, DailyExpertNews reported.
Biden described the shooting as “yet another horrific reminder of how gun violence continues to tear our communities apart.”
“Jill (Biden) and I mourn the deaths of those whose lives were cut short by more senseless gun violence and think of all the survivors whose lives have been changed forever. What should have been a joyous start to the school year in Winder, Georgia, has now turned into another horrific reminder of how gun violence continues to tear our communities apart,” Biden said in a statement released by the White House.
The US president lamented that students across the country are “learning how to duck and cover instead of how to read and write.”
“We can no longer accept this as business as usual. We are working closely with officials at the federal, state and local levels and are grateful to the first responders who took the suspect into custody and prevented further loss of life,” Biden said.
Biden further reaffirmed his commitment to addressing the gun violence epidemic in the US and highlighted his efforts to tackle the problem, including signing the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act.
“Ending this gun violence epidemic is personal to me. That's why I signed the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, the most significant gun safety bill in decades, and announced dozens of executive actions on gun safety. I also created the first-ever White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention, under Vice President Harris's oversight. We've made significant progress, but this crisis demands even more,” he said.
Biden called on Republicans to work with Democrats in Congress to pass gun safety legislation to prevent future gun violence, saying, “Enough is enough.”
“After decades of inaction, Republicans in Congress must finally say 'enough is enough' and work with Democrats to pass commonsense gun safety legislation. We must re-ban assault rifles and high-capacity magazines, require safe storage of firearms, implement universal background checks, and end immunity for gun manufacturers. These measures won't bring back those tragically killed today, but they will help prevent more tragic gun violence from tearing more families apart,” Biden said.
US Vice President Kamala Harris also expressed her condolences to those affected by the shooting, describing it as a “senseless tragedy”.
“Today, Doug and I mourn the loss of those whose lives were cut short by gun violence at Apalachee High School in Georgia. Our hearts are with the students, teachers, and families affected by this shooting, and we are grateful to the first responders and law enforcement on the scene. This is a senseless tragedy — and it doesn't have to be this way. We must end the epidemic of gun violence in our country once and for all,” said Kamala Harris.
Georgia Governor Brian P Kemp also posted a message on X saying, “I have deployed all available state resources to respond to the incident at Apalachee High School and I urge all Georgians to join my family in praying for the safety of those in our classrooms, both in Barrow County and across the state.”
“We continue to work with local, state and federal partners as we gather information and further respond to this situation,” he added.
Meanwhile, the suspected shooter is in custody and has been identified as 14-year-old Colt Cray, a student at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia, about an hour outside of Atlanta. Two of the dead were students and two were teachers. Law enforcement is still investigating the shooting and the motive behind it.
The high school had previously received a telephone threat, multiple law enforcement officials told DailyExpertNews.
The call Wednesday morning warned that five schools would be shot, with Apalachee being the first. It is not known who made the call. Officials tell DailyExpertNews they are investigating the call and where it came from.
According to the Gun Violence Archive, which like DailyExpertNews defines a mass shooting as one in which four or more victims are shot, the U.S. has seen at least 385 mass shootings so far this year. That’s an average of more than 1.5 mass shootings per day.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by DailyExpertNews staff and is published via a syndicated feed.)
