Politics

Ocasio-Cortez Uses Synagogue Shooting To Push Gun Control Bill

By Jesse Korman, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=70354087

Democratic New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Saturday used a shooting at a California synagogue that left one person dead to demand the Senate act on a gun control bill.

One person is dead and three others are injured following the shooting at Chabad of Poway synagogue, authorities said. Police have one suspect in custody, who is described as a 19-year-old male.

#UPDATE: What we know about the Chabad Poway synagogue shooting today:
-Suspect: 19 year-old, white male is in custody, he used AR-style rifle, surrendered w/o incident
-Fatality: 1 older female
-Injuries: 3 patients – a female juvenile & 2 adult males, all in stable condition

— Ana Cabrera (@AnaCabrera) April 27, 2019

“Heartbroken to hear of the San Diego synagogue shooting, particularly so on this final day of Passover,” Ocasio-Cortez wrote in a tweet, before pivoting to gun control.

“We have a responsibility to love + protect our neighbors,” she wrote. “The longer the Senate delays holding a vote on #HR8, the more we put Americans at risk.”

The legislation expands federal background checks to include private transfers and could effectively ban Americans ages 18 to 20 from acquiring handguns. The Democratically controlled House passed HR8 in February.

California, where the shooting took place, recently tightened statewide gun laws.

Legislation that took effect in January raised the age for purchasing a long gun from 18 to 21. A federal judge in March struck down a law banning firearm magazines that hold more than 10 rounds.

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