President Joe Biden signed the widest ranging gun violence bill Congress has passed in decades Saturday.
The bill is a measured compromise that at once illustrates progress on the long-intractable issue and the deep-seated partisan divide that persists.
"I was there 30 years ago the last time this nation passed meaningful gun safety laws, and I'm here today to sign the most significant law passed since then," Biden said before signing the bill.
The Democratic-led chamber approved the election-year legislation on a mostly party-line 234-193 vote, capping a spurt of action prompted by voters' revulsion over last month’s mass shootings in New York and Texas. The Senate approved the measure late Thursday by a bipartisan 65-33 margin.
Every House Democrat and 14 Republicans — six of whom won't be in Congress next year — voted for the measure. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., underscored its significance to her party by taking the unusual step of presiding over the vote and announcing the result from the podium, to huzzahs from rank-and-file Democrats on the chamber's floor.
Biden said the bill doesn't include all of the measures he wanted, but would help prevent gun violence and aid survivors.
"Today, we say more than enough," he said Saturday. "This time, when it seems impossible to get anything done in Washington, we are doing something consequential."
READ MORE: https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/nation-world/biden-sign-gun-violence-bill-congress/507-1a6de230-5030-494b-a384-a15ea8c6da33
As Charlotte continues to grow, there is a need to reduce the dependence on cars and trucks and other vehicles and the pollution they create.
On Monday, the city council will look at mobility issues now as part of its 2040 plan. Leaders know that if not addressed directly, traffic and sprawl would only worsen.
Ed McKinney, the Deputy Transportation Director of Charlotte, said we only need to look at other cities for guidance on what can be done.
"Cities around our country that are doing the same thing, that is achieving the same goals that we are putting in place, so we have peers that show us the way, it's possible," McKinney said.
READ MORE: https://www.wcnc.com/article/life/automotive/charlotte-nc-money-mobility-plan/275-c506af5f-4edc-41e2-bb0d-5a0f40089555
Watch Wake Up Charlotte each weekday morning from 4:30 to 7 a.m. on WCNC Charlotte, and as always, join the conversation on social media using #WakeUpCLT!
