President Obama indicated Wednesday that he backs the effort by House Democrats to force a vote on gun control legislation, which threatened to shut down the entire House for the rest of the day.
“Thanks you John Lewis for leading on gun violence where we need it most,” Obama tweeted.
Thank you John Lewis for leading on gun violence where we need it most. https://t.co/vctfqAH5Wt
— President Obama (@POTUS44) June 22, 2016
Before Obama’s tweet, White House spokesman Josh Earnest said he too sympathizes with House Democrats. He said Democrats took “extraordinary steps” with their sit-in on the House floor.
“They’re showing the kind of frustration and, even anger, that people around the country have about the inability of the Republican-led Congress to take common-sense steps that would protect the American people,” Earnest said.
Earnest said what Democrats are seeking with their protest, the opportunity to vote on a proposal to bar people on the no-fly list from buying guns and similar legislation, is “neither radical nor controversial.”
They are “rightly frustrated” and “taking some extraordinary steps to try and change that,” he said.
