| Biden announces six new executive actions to curb gun violence; Protestants and Catholics clash in Northern Ireland. Tonight's Sentences was written by Greg Svirnovskiy.
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Although the world has changed a lot since our founding, we've held tight to our mission: to make the most important issues clear and comprehensible, and empower you to shape the world in which you live. Help us celebrate and support our unique mission by making a $7 contribution today. | | | | | | | Biden takes executive action on gun reform | | | | | Erin Scott-Pool/Getty Images | | - President Joe Biden on Thursday announced six executive actions aimed at curtailing gun violence in America. Chief among them: new regulations on "ghost guns" and the nomination of a new director to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF). [Washington Post / Seung Min Kim and Tyler Pager]
- "Ghost guns," which come in kits and are assembled either at home or via 3D printer, do not currently have serial numbers, meaning they are untraceable by the federal government. Biden wants to change that, attaching serial numbers to each individual part and subjecting buyers to a tangible background check process. [Zlati Meyer / Fast Company]
- Dave Chipman, a former ATF agent and current adviser at Giffords, a gun control advocacy center, is Biden's pick for bureau chief. ATF executive nominations usually go through a particularly difficult confirmation process. None have been confirmed since 2013; since 2015, they've all served in acting capacity. [NPR / Chloee Weiner]
- Biden's executive actions address only a very small part of America's gun violence epidemic. Congress is the deliberative body equipped with the power to institute an assault weapons ban or to universalize background checks. [The Hill / Alex Gangitano]
- Two bills have passed through the House in recent months that would significantly change how guns are acquired in America. One would force private sellers to conduct background checks on every purchase. Another would close a loophole that allows buyers to complete their purchases without a background check if the FBI doesn't complete it quickly. The shooter who killed nine people in 2015 at a Black church in Charleston, South Carolina, acquired his weapon that way. [Vox / Sean Collins]
- But those bills are likely to stall in the Senate; not even all Democrats support them. Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) has opposed HR 8, saying he does not favor background checks on private gun sales. Instead, Manchin endorses a more conservative background check bill he co-authored with Sen. Pat Toomey (R-PA) in 2012. [Associated Press / Mary Clare Jalonick]
- As Congress continues its standstill, people continue to die in mass shootings. On Wednesday, five people, including a local doctor, his wife, and their grandchildren, were killed in a shooting at their home in Rock Hill, South Carolina. [CNN / Jason Hanna, Dianne Gallagher and Christina Maxouris]
- Biden was stoic in his announcement on gun reforms. "Whether Congress acts or not, I'm going to use all of the resources at my disposal as president of the United States to protect Americans from gun violence," he said. [CBS News / Ed O'Keefe and Grace Segers]
| | | Violent clashes in Ireland stir memories of the Troubles | | - Violence erupted in Belfast Wednesday, as crowds of Protestant unionists clashed with Catholic Irish nationalists, throwing bricks and petroleum bombs at each other and at police. It was an inflection point in a week of violence across the capital of Northern Ireland, whose position in the UK has become more fraught because of Brexit. [Associated Press / Peter Morrison and Jill Lawless]
- Unrest broke out last week amid unionist anger that police had decided not to prosecute members of the Irish Nationalist Party for breaking stay-at-home orders to attend the funeral of a Sinn Fein leader. Since then, 55 police officers have been injured at protester skirmishes. [CNN / Emmet Lyons, Amy Cassidy, Niamh Kennedy and Peter Taggart]
- But there are deeper reasons for the unrest. Unionists have been upset that UK Brexit deal has created an economic border between Britain and Northern Ireland, despite unionist support for Brexit. Nationalists, for their part, want to see greater ties to the Republic of Ireland and the European Union. [The Economist]
- Wednesday night's clashes reminded some of the Troubles, a 30-year period of sectarian violence across Northern Ireland, in which 3,500 civilians, British security forces, and paramilitaries were killed. Saturday will mark the 23rd anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement, which ended the violence and created a militarized border between Ireland and its Northern counterpart. [Insider / Bill Bostock]
- UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, whose Brexit deal is largely recognized as having tipped off the violence, spoke with North Irish Taoiseach Michael Martin about the need to restore calm. "I am deeply concerned by the scenes of violence in Northern Ireland," Johnson tweeted, adding, "The way to resolve differences is through dialogue." [Bloomberg / Joe Mayes]
- The Biden administration echoed Johnson's sentiments. "We are concerned by the violence in Northern Ireland and we join the British, Irish and Northern Irish leaders in their call for calm," White House press secretary Jen Psaki said. [The Irish Times / Pat Leahy, Suzanne Lynch and Brian Hutton]
| | | | | | | Andrew Yang, former presidential candidate and current frontrunner in the race for New York City mayor, is increasingly under attack by other mayoral candidates. Yang remains in the lead, but nearly half of Democratic primary voters say they are undecided. | | | [Politico / Erin Durkin] - Children are now spreading Covid-19 in large part through extracurricular athletics, said Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC is recommending children limit participation in youth sports. [CNN / Megan Marples]
- Australian health officials are now recommending the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine not be given to people under 50, after the European Medicines Agency said it found a "possible link" between the vaccine and a spate of powerful blood clots. [Associated Press]
- In an op-ed, Sen. Joe Manchin said that there is no chance he'll vote to end the filibuster. He also said he'd like to avoid passing bills under budget reconciliation, a maneuver that allowed the Senate to pass President Biden's $1.9 trillion Covid-relief bill with just 50 votes. Budget reconciliation is expected to also be necessary for Biden's infrastructure plan. [NBC News / Dartunorro Clark].
- India hit a new Covid-19 case peak Thursday, recording 126,789 cases as the country grapples with a renewed Covid surge. The country's vaccination drive is plodding along slowly. Only 11 million people have received both shots in a population of 1.4 billion. [Associated Press]
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