Biden demands GOP lawmakers support wide-ranging gun restrictions after recent shootings

A string of shootings nationwide in the past few days prompted President Biden to call on congressional Republicans to back "meaningful, commonsense" restrictions on gun purchases such as Illinois' ban on so-called assault weapons and high-capacity magazines.

In a White House statement, Biden cited gun violence in Fort Worth, Texas, with three dead and eight wounded Monday night; Philadelphia, with five dead and two children injured also Monday; Baltimore, where two died and 28 were injured at a block party Sunday; and other "tragic and senseless shootings" in Lansing, Wichita and Chicago.

The Illinois ban, pushed through by Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Highland Park Mayor Nancy Rotering after a mass shooting in that Chicago suburb on the previous Independence Day, "will save lives," the president said.

"And as we have seen over the last few days, much more must be done in Illinois and across America to address the epidemic of gun violence that is tearing our communities apart," banning not just weapons such as AR-15-style rifles but requiring "safe storage" and universal background checks and ending liability immunity for manufacturers, Biden said.