Trump promises action on gun laws

WASHINGTON—President Donald Trump on Thursday called on Congress to take action on U.S. gun laws. “I will be strongly pushing Comprehensive Background Checks with an emphasis on Mental Health,” Trump wrote on Twitter. “Raise age to 21 and end sale of Bump Stocks! Congress is in a mood to finally do something on this issue—I hope!” The minimum age to buy a rifle in the U.S. is 18, but it is 21 for handguns. Nikolas Cruz, the 19-year-old gunman in last week’s school shooting in Parkland, Fla., used an AR-15 rifle, which he purchased legally. The president held a listening session Wednesday at the White House with parents, teachers, and other local officials from Parkland and sites of school shootings in Newtown, Conn., and Littleton, Colo. Parents called on Trump to support limiting the sales of the AR-15 and other semi-automatic rifles used in mass shootings. During a CNN town hall event Wednesday night near the scene of the Parkland shooting, parents of some of the victims challenged Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., to distance himself from the National Rifle Association and support reforming access to assault weapons. Rubio would not commit to refusing donations from the NRA but said his views have shifted and he also believes in raising the required age on rifle purchases and reviewing the use of high-capacity magazines.