OnPolitics: President Joe Biden calls on state leaders to strengthen gun background checks

Hi there, OnPolitics readers. President Joe Biden is calling on state lawmakers to strengthen gun laws to help combat mass shootings. Let's get into what he said.

In a Paste BN op-ed published yesterday, Biden said he will urge governors and other state lawmakers to strengthen gun background checks on buyers under 21 years old and enact laws that would give the federal background check system "access to all records that could prohibit someone under age 21 from purchasing a firearm."

Biden's comments coincide with the one-year anniversary of a mass shooting in Buffalo, N.Y., where a white 19-year-old gunman killed 10 Black people at a supermarket.

What this means: Biden is turning to the state level and officials to address mass shootings after failing to get Congress to pass major federal gun reform.

Why is this important?: In the year since the mass shooting in Buffalo, N.Y., Biden has been forced to confront mass shootings in Uvalde, Texas; Monterey Park, Calif.; Michigan State University; Nashville, Tenn.; Louisville, Ky.; Dadeville Ala.; and most recently, Allen, Texas, among many other places, reporter Joey Garrison writes.

Bottom line: This is Biden's latest move to try and combat mass shootings as his repeated calls for Congress to reinstate a federal ban on assault weapons has gone nowhere. Biden says he has exhausted the "full extent of my executive authority" on gun control reform.

👁️‍🗨️ Keep reading: Biden calls on states to strengthen background checks on young buyers in Paste BN op-ed

🚨 ICYMI: President Biden says 'no rationale for assault weapons' after Michigan State University shooting

📨 Get newsletter in your inbox: Don't miss our politics coverage. Sign up for OnPolitics.