President-elect Joseph R. Biden vowed to defeat the National Rifle Association in a statement marking 10 years since the assassination attempt of former Democratic Rep. Gabby Giffords in Tucson that left six people dead.
“Your perseverance and immeasurable courage continue to inspire me and millions of others,” Mr. Biden tweeted to Ms. Giffords Friday. “I pledge to continue to work with you — and with survivors, families, and advocates across the country — to defeat the NRA and end our epidemic of gun violence.”
In a statement on his transition website, Mr. Biden thanked Ms. Giffords for her anti-gun activism since the 2011 attack, in which the then-congresswoman was shot in the head and left with a traumatic brain injury and paralysis that ended in her eventual resignation.
“Like so many survivors of violence, Gabby has turned tragedy into purpose, working with other leaders across the country to transform the fight for gun safety reform from a cause to a movement,” the president-elect wrote. “Every day she fights to make our communities safer and move us closer to our goal of a nation free from gun violence.”
The NRA responded to Mr. Biden in a tweet Sunday urging gun owners to “stay vigilant” in defending their right to bear arms under the incoming administration.
“On Friday, Biden pledged to DEFEAT THE NRA,” the group wrote. “Biden wants to ban our semi-auto rifles, tax our guns/mags & more. He knows the only thing standing in his way to DISMANTLE THE 2ND AMENDMENT is NRA. Gun owners must stay vigilant & be engaged in elections and the legislative process.”
As president, Mr. Biden has promised to ban the manufacture and sale of so-called “assault weapons” and high-capacity magazines, as well as institute a national buyback program so owners of existing “weapons of war” can either sell them to the government or register them under the National Firearms Act, according to his campaign website.
Mr. Biden also wants to limit the number of firearms people can buy to one per month in order to prevent the stockpiling of weapons, and he wants to prohibit all online sales of firearms, ammunition, kits, and gun parts. He also said he wants to “put America on the path to ensuring that 100% of firearms sold in America are smart guns” and that he will “issue a call to action for gun manufacturers, dealers, and other public and private entities to take steps to accelerate our transition to smart guns.”