MIAMI – Politicians from South Florida react to President Barack Obama's plan to curb gun violence.
Florida Gov. Rick Scott's office released a statement Thursday, saying: "Governor Scott supports the second amendment. He will listen to ideas about improving school safety during the legislative session, but he continues to support the second amendment and is not proposing any gun law changes."
U.S. Senator Marco Rubio issued the following statement Wednesday: "As the father of four young children, I was deeply saddened by the murder of innocent kids at Sandy Hook. In the aftermath of this terrible tragedy, I expressed my hope that President Obama and our elected leaders would take a sober look at how we can prevent such heinous murders in the future. Doing so would require addressing the underlying causes of these evil acts, and keeping guns out of the hands of criminals and the mentally ill without curtailing the 2nd Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens.
"Nothing the President is proposing would have stopped the massacre at Sandy Hook. President Obama is targeting the 2nd Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens instead of seriously addressing the real underlying causes of such violence. Rolling back responsible citizens' rights is not the proper response to tragedies committed by criminals and the mentally ill. Making matters worse is that President Obama is again abusing his power by imposing his policies via executive fiat instead of allowing them to be debated in Congress. President Obama's frustration with our republic and the way it works doesn't give him license to ignore the Constitution.
"Guns are not the problem; criminals with evil in their hearts and mentally ill people prone to violence are. Rather than sweeping measures that make it harder for responsible, law-abiding citizens to purchase firearms, we should focus on the root causes of gun violence and keep guns out of the hands of criminals and the mentally ill.
"As a strong defender of the 2nd Amendment, I will oppose the President's attempts to undermine Americans' constitutional right to bear arms."
U.S. Senator Bill Nelson issued the following statement: "I'm hunter and I've always owned guns, and I'll be hunting pythons in the Everglades this week. What President Obama is proposing is not an assault on the Second Amendment. Why in the world would we not want to check to see if a person buying a weapon has a criminal record? And why wouldn't we want limits on assault weapons like AK-47s? People are buying assault weapons to kill others, not to hunt. And when assault rifles are used to kill children, it's time for America to act. This is a problem that common sense and moderation should dictate what the law should be."
U.S. Rep. Lois Frankel issued the following statement: "Today President Obama unveiled common-sense proposals and took action to reduce gun violence and make our communities and our country safer without infringing on the 2nd Amendment. People in South Florida and across America have the right to be free from violence when they send their kids to school or go to the movies and that's why it is so important we act now.
Frankel applauded President Obama for his proposals that call for requiring background checks for all gun sales, reinstating and strengthening the assault weapons ban, restoring the ban on high-capacity magazines and increasing access to mental health services.
Frankel has been appointed to serve on the congressional Gun Violence Prevention Task Force and is co-sponsoring two bills to reduce gun violence. She is co-sponsor of the Large Capacity Ammunition Feeding Device Act, which would restore the federal ban on high capacity magazines and the Gunshow Loophole Closing Act of 2013, which would require criminal background checks for all firearms purchased at gun shows."
Below are documents released by the White House details the President's announced gun policy.