Obama Doesn't Mince Words in Call for Gun Control After Oregon Shooting: 'Prayers Are Not Enough

President Barack Obama delivered a strong call for gun control in the aftermath of the deadly Oregon shooting Thursday, saying from the White House that "thoughts and prayers" for the families "are not enough."

"There's been another mass shooting in America," the president said at the outset of his remarks. "This time at a community college in Oregon."

"In the coming days we will learn about the victims. The young men and women who were studying and learning and working hard, their eyes set on the future, their dreams, on what they could make of their lives. And America will wrap everyone who is grieving with our prayers and our love."

Image source: Screen grab via YouTube

Obama then turned to the issue of gun control.

"As I said just a few months ago ... our thoughts and prayers are not enough," he said. "It's not enough. It does not capture the heartache and grief and anger that we should feel. And it does nothing to prevent this carnage from being inflicted some place else in America."

"This is something we should politicize," Obama added.

[sharequote align="center"]"This is something we should politicize."[/sharequote]

Obama contended that "the notion that gun laws don't work" is "not borne out by the evidence." He argued that the frequency of mass shootings can be reduced and said it is merely "a political choice that we make to allow this to happen every few months."

Obama said the problem is "not something that I can do by myself," noting he would need the help of Congress, governors and state legislators.

The president issued a plea to gun owners, asking them to rethink their support for organizations like the National Rifle Association.

“I would particularly ask America’s gun owners, who are using those guns properly, safely, to hunt, for sport, for protecting their families, to think about whether your views are properly being represented by the organization that suggests its speaking for you," he said.

"May God bless the memories of those who were killed today. May He bring comfort to their families and courage to the injured as they fight their way back. And may He give us the strength to come together and find the courage to change."

—

Follow the author of this story on Twitter and Facebook:

Follow @oliverdarcy