Biden's Comments on 9mm Handguns, 2nd Amendment Draw Scrutiny
Summary from the AllSides News Team
President Joe Biden's recent remarks about handguns and gun laws sparked criticism from fact-checkers and conservative voices.
Speaking to reporters at the White House Monday after meeting with Uvalde shooting victims' families, Biden said that when he visited a New York trauma hospital 20-25 years ago and asked why the death rate had gone up, a trauma doctor told him that "a 9mm bullet blows the lung out of the body." Biden then said there is "no rational basis" for owning "high caliber" weapons for self-protection or hunting. He also drew a historical comparison, and falsely claimed that people couldn't buy cannons when the 2nd Amendment was passed. According to Shooting Industry magazine, 9mm pistols accounted for 57% of all U.S.-made handguns in 2019. The Beretta M9, a semiautomatic 9mm handgun, is the service pistol used by the United States Armed Forces.
Right-rated outlets covered Biden remarks prominently. Many framed his characterization of 9mm handguns as misleading; highlighted how 9mm handguns are used widely by civilians; and pointed out how Biden's 2nd Amendment comment had been deemed false by fact checkers across the spectrum for concealed carry and self-protection. Some conservative voices and politicians accused Biden of encouraging a ban on handguns similar to the one recently proposed in Canada. Few left-rated outlets covered the remarks. Those that did, such as the Washington Post, didn't offer other context or scrutiny of Biden's remarks about handguns and the 2nd Amendment.
Featured Coverage of this Story
From the Left
Biden vows to ‘continue to push’ for gun laws after visiting UvaldeAs mourners in Uvalde, Tex., prepared to bury 19 children and two teachers, elected officials vowed Monday to examine last week’s elementary school massacre and the flawed police response, and drive changes to gun laws.
President Biden, who spent nearly four hours Sunday visiting with the families of Uvalde victims, told reporters he would not give up on efforts to achieve “common-sense” gun legislation.
“The folks who were victimized, their families, they spent three hours and 40 minutes with me. They waited all that time. Some came two hours early,” Biden told...
From the Center
Joe Biden Says 9mm Bullet 'Blows The Lung Out of The Body'President Joe Biden said a 9mm bullet "blows the lung out of the body" while discussing options on gun legislation on Monday, prompting some to suggest he was calling for handguns to be banned.
Biden made the remarks while speaking to reporters outside the White House, a day after he and first lady Jill Biden visited Uvalde, Texas, and comforted families grieving the 19 children and two teachers who were killed in a mass shooting at an elementary school last week.
The president has urged Congress to pass broader gun measures, such as new ban...
From the Right
Biden goes on anti-gun tirade, suggests there’s ‘no rational basis’ for 9mm pistolsPresident Biden ranted against ownership of what he called “high-caliber weapons” Monday — appearing to suggest that there should be restrictions on the most popular handgun in America, the 9mm pistol, and repeating a previously debunked claim that the Second Amendment prohibits ownership of cannons.
Speaking to reporters outside the White House after returning to Washington from a weekend that included a visit to the site of last week’s mass shooting in Texas, Biden recounted a visit to a trauma hospital in New York, where he said doctors had showed him X-rays...
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