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Trump assassination: USA gun laws to blame?

(Bild: APA/AFP/GETTY IMAGES/WIN MCNAMEE, stock.adobe.com)

Donald Trump was almost killed at a campaign event in Pennsylvania. The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) officially classifies the incident as an "attempted assassination" against the former and possible 47th President of the USA. The shooter was a 20-year-old from the area who is associated with both Republicans and Democrats. Could this assassination have been prevented by stricter gun laws? We look forward to your comments!

Inadequate gun laws?
Time and again in the USA, young children are injured or killed while handling firearms. Unfortunately, school shootings are also increasingly shocking the American population. In Austria, for example, the danger of misuse of firearms is reduced by the strict gun laws. On the side of the proponents, however, voices are repeatedly raised here and in the USA who believe that this means a restriction on self-defense. But the question arises: could the assassination attempt on Trump and other tragic incidents involving the use of firearms have been prevented if stricter gun laws had been in place?

(Bild: AP)

Politicians live dangerously
Unfortunately, assassinations of presidents or other political figures have long been a tradition in the USA. Most Americans probably remember the assassination attempt on J.F. Kennedy, but Martin Luther King, for example, was also the victim of a gunman with a firearm. 

(Bild: REUTERS)

Gun ownership enshrined in the constitution
The right to keep and bear arms is enshrined in the Second Amendment of the US Constitution. The Gun Control Act (GCA) of 1968 regulates the trade of firearms, prohibits sales to certain individuals such as criminals or the mentally disabled, and requires a license for gun dealers. Background checks for gun buyers are also specified. However, each state has its own laws and regulations regarding gun ownership and transportation. These may be stricter or less strict than federal laws. In many states, however, firearm registration is not required. And while federal laws require background checks for purchases from licensed dealers, in some states there is no such requirement for private sales, often referred to as the "gun show loophole."

(Bild: Karen Ducey/Getty Images/AFP )

Did the shooter have a registered gun?
The FBI identified the alleged perpetrator as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks of Pennsylvania. Crooks was killed by security forces shortly after the attempted assassination of Trump. According to investigators, Crooks was from Bethel Park, a town about 70 kilometers south of Butler, where the campaign event took place. According to the FBI, Crooks' motive is still unclear. The suspected assassin was listed on the electoral roll as a member of the opposition Republicans, Trump's party, but is also said to have donated to the Democrats. The question of whether the man legally owned a gun has probably not yet been clarified. 

The gun lobby in America
Consequently, the question of whether the assassination could have been prevented if there had been less lax gun laws in the USA is also coming to the fore. Rumor has it that the gun lobby in particular is standing in the way of this plan. Others believe that owning a gun in the USA is to some extent part of their rights and customs. 

Where do you stand on the issue of gun laws? Do we need stricter gun laws in the USA? Which regulations need to be tightened and why? Could this have prevented the assassination attempt on Trump and others like it? We look forward to your comments!