WASHINGTON, June 23 (Reuters) - President Joe Biden pledged on Wednesday to go after illegal gun dealers and boost federal funding and support for local law enforcement as homicide rates have spiked in large cities.
"Merchants of death are breaking the law for profit," Biden said, adding the administration will have "zero tolerance" for rogue firearms dealers accountable for violating federal laws.
He said the government also will help states employ more police officers using funds already approved to help the economy recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.
"My message to you is this," Biden said, addressing gun dealers who "willfully" break the law. "We will find you and we'll seek your license to sell guns. We'll make sure you can't sell death and mayhem on our streets."
The administration will strengthen efforts by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) to stop illegal gun trafficking across states, Biden and Attorney General Merrick Garland said at the White House, reiterating steps the Department of Justice unveiled Tuesday.
In April, Biden signed executive orders asking the DOJ to crack down on self-assembled "ghost guns." Such orders allow Biden to act quickly without waiting for Congress, where Democrats hold a razor-thin majority and Republicans generally oppose gun control legislation.
Gun rights, protected by the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, are among the thorniest political issues in America, where the rate of gun deaths exceeds other wealthy countries.
In 2020 homicides in large U.S. cities rose 30% from a year earlier while gun assaults rose 8%with the fastest rate in big cities including Chicago and Houston, the White House said, citing a report by the nonpartisan research group the Council on Criminal Justice.
Overall the national rate is still far below the national average in the 1970s or 1980s.
Property crimes, such as burglaries and larcenies, fell significantly in 2020.
Before speaking, Biden and Garland met with the mayors of Baltimore, Maryland and Rapid City, South Dakota, the police chief of Baton Rouge, Louisiana and other experts to discuss community safety measures.
The U.S. Treasury Department released information on how states and localities can tapthe $350 billion from the American Rescue Plan Act to respond to violent crime, including by investing in community policing.
