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President Joe Biden’s Speech on Gun Violence

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President Joe Biden’s Speech on Gun Violence

1. Introduction

President Joe Biden is the 46th president of the United States of America. His term began

on January 20, 2021, after his inauguration ceremony. Gun violence control is an issue of interest

to the President; this is because in 1994 while serving as the chairman of the Senate Judiciary

Committee, he led the fight against the ban on assault weapons. The President was speaking

following a mass shooting that had occured on January 21, 2023 in Monterey Park in California.

The shooting took away the lives of eleven people while nine others injured. President Biden’s

speech is very important because, as the leader of the U.S, people rely on him to lead them.

It is important to effectively critique the President’s speech to understand the effect of his

speech on the issue of gun violence and the people who look up to him for leadership. The

American people have expressed concerns over the increase in gun violence, specifically mass

shootings in schools., streets, parks, and churches. It is important to evaluate the speech to

determine how effective it is, especially after such an attack. I am interested in critiquing the

President’s speech because he is a democrat, which is the party known to support gun control. I

am interested in analyzing his speech addressing the shooting.

2. Body

A. Dominant Themes

The dominant themes in the president’s speech are gun violence and support for the

victims of gun violence. According to Helmore (2023), President Biden issued a statement

yesterday, March 27, 2023, after the shooting incident at a Cristian Elementary School in

Nashville, which left six people dead, among them three children. The president has time and
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again called on Congress to pass a ban on assault weapons like the one passed in 1994. In his

speech, he explains how gun violence has left families without their loved ones, including

children who are left without parents. He calls on law enforcers and gun providers to ensure

proper background checks are conducted on people.

The other dominant theme is support for victims and survivors of gun violence, which

include mental health care. In his speech, Biden highlights that he signed into law the Bipartisan

Safer Communities Act, which is among the most significant gun control laws the country has

seen in over thirty years. The act calls to action the change in the mental health system where

individuals who have experienced grief and trauma as a result of gun violence can receive help.

The act ensures that individuals receive support to build back their lives.

B. Barriers and Advantages

People’s attitudes are one of the major barriers to the President’s speech. In his speech,

he announced an executive order that calls for the Attorney General to take lawful actions to

ensure that individuals with questionable backgrounds do not have access to guns. An article by

Blaff (2022) highlights that President Biden’s son, Hunter violated federal law by lying on a

background check while acquiring a gun. The President’s son is said to have lied about being a

user of drugs, while in his recently published memoir, he admitted to being a user of cocaine at

the time he purchased the gun. This incident may have a negative effect on people’s faith in the

leadership of the President regarding gun control. This is because people will think that if the

President cannot control his own son, how can he control an entire nation?

Another barrier that the President had to overcome was people’s faith in the government

to end gun violence. Biden was addressing the community that had experienced the horrors of
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the mass shooting. Among them, there were individuals who had lost loved ones or had their

loved ones injured in the shooting. The people could have experienced a lack of faith in

President Biden’s government since mass shootings were on the rise in the country. An article

published by BBC written by Yousif (2023) indicates that mass shootings in the United States

have risen sharply. The author indicates over 1 900 people have lost their lives in mass shootings

between 2020 and 2023.

There are some advantages favoring the President, which would have made his speech

effective. The first advantage is people’s tolerance of gun violence. The American people are

tired of the increased mass shootings in the country. Individuals call upon lawmakers to pass

laws that will see the effective control of guns. An article by PBS News Hour published on May

2022 showcases how the American people are tired of waiting for lawmakers to act on gun

violence. PBS asked all sitting senators what their plans were to act on gun violence. This means

that the President has the support of Americans who are passionate about ending gun violence.

President Biden’s track record with gun violence laws is an advantage to him. As a

leader, he has shown that he is equal to the task and that he can protect his people from the

shackles of gun violence. An article by Richard (2023) indicates that president Biden has

promised to see through the ban on assault weapons as he did in 1994. The 1994 ban on assault

weapons provides president Biden with a positive track record in the fight against gun violence.

Biden also signed the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act after the mass shooting in Texas last

year. The act is considered to be the most significant gun safety law America has had in almost

thirty years. This shows the President’s commitment to addressing gun violence.

Another advantage that President Biden has is the timing of his speech and the place he

chose to issue his speech from. The president went to visit the community that had experienced
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the horrors of gun violence, which shows the people that he cares about the victims and survivors

of the ordeal. He did not take time to address the people, which can signal to the people that he is

ready to act on the issue with urgency.

C. Strategies Used and Comparison to the Barriers and Advantages

President Biden used ethos and pathos as rhetorical devices in his speech. This is because

he needed to persuade his audience in his speech. The president appealed to the emotions of the

people in his speech. “Every case is different, but I know what it’s like. I know what it’s like to

get that call. I know what it’s like to be told. I know what it’s like to lose a loved one so

suddenly. It’s like losing a piece of your soul. It’s like a black hole in your chest you feel like

you’re being sucked into” (Biden, 2023). He highlights the emotions that people who have lost

loved ones to gun violence experience. He empathizes with the victims of the Monterey Park

shooting, which not only appeals to their emotions but to the emotions of congressmen and law

makers in the country.

Having experienced the loss of his son, it is evident that President Biden knows how

painful it is to lose a loved one. This strategy helps him to overcome the barrier of people having

no faith in him because of the incident with his son. President Biden names all the victims who

lost their lives in the shooting, including their contributions to society. This shows the people

that he cares and the people are not just a statistic. According to Kolinovsky (2023), president

Biden honored the victims of the shooting by calling their individual names. This helps him to

overcome the barrier of people lacking faith in his leadership. It strengthens the idea of him

being a caring leader.

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The president appeals to the audience by highlighting his credibility in fighting gun

violence. He highlights his achievements in the ban on assault weapons of 1994. In his speech,

he highlights that Republicans allowed the ban to die, which shows that his being a democrat is a

positive sign that he can win the fight. The president also states that he has managed to sign the

Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which is the most important gun law in the U.S. He also gave

an executive order during his speech on how he planned to address gun violence. This enables

him to overcome the barrier of people not having faith in his presidency. His previous

achievements help the audience to have faith in him. It strengthens the advantage of having made

significant steps in gun control.

The president’s tone and choice of words are a great strategy that makes his speech

effective. His tone varies throughout the speech, where he uses an empathetic and consoling tone

when addressing the victims and survivors of gun violence in the Asian community. His tone

changes when addressing Brandon Tsay, a man who saved people from the shooter, to show his

pride and honor. The president also uses an authoritative and confident tone to show the people

that his government is ready to fight the menace of gun violence. His choice of words in the

speech is to console and give people hope in his government. This enables him to overcome the

barriers of people not having faith in him. It also shows people that he is the right man for the

job.

3. Conclusion

President Joe Biden’s speech is an effective rhetoric. This is because he is able to

incorporate rhetorical devices and strategies to overcome the barriers he encounters with the

audience. The organization of his speech makes it easy for the audience to connect and relate to

what he intends to put across.

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He is able to appeal to the emotions of the audience by showing empathy and using a

tone and words that spark emotions from his audience. He is able to appeal to the audience by

using his credibility by narrating his past achievements in the fight against gun control. The

strategies also strengthen the advantages he has by showing his people that he can be trusted.
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References

Blaff, A. (2022, October 12). Biden breaks silence on looming gun charges against Hunter: 'he's

established a new life'. National Review. Retrieved March 28, 2023, from

https://www.nationalreview.com/news/biden-breaks-silence-on-looming-gun-charges-

against-hunter-hes-established-a-new-life/

Helmore, E. (2023, March 27). Biden says gun violence 'ripping our communities apart' after

Tennessee shooting. The Guardian. Retrieved March 28, 2023, from

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/mar/27/biden-tennessee-school-shooting-gun-

control-congress

Kolinovsky, S. (2023, March 15). Biden honors Monterey Park shooting victims while taking

executive actions on guns Biden’s action asks the AG to define who is “in the business” of

selling guns. ABC News. Retrieved March 28, 2023, from

https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/biden-honors-monterey-park-shooting-victims-rolling-

executive/story?id=97860369

Public Broadcasting Service. (2022, May 26). We asked every senator what action should be

taken on guns. here's what they said. PBS. Retrieved March 28, 2023, from

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/what-action-should-be-taken-on-guns-we-asked-

every-senator

Richard, L. (2023, March 17). Biden doubles down on 'assault weapons' ban, says he'll see

through the process like 'in 1994'. Fox News. Retrieved March 28, 2023, from
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https://www.foxnews.com/politics/biden-doubles-down-assault-weapons-ban-says-hell-

see-through-process-like-1994

The United States Government. (2023, March 14). Remarks by president Biden on efforts to

reduce gun violence. The White House. Retrieved March 28, 2023, from

https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/speeches-remarks/2023/03/14/remarks-by-

president-biden-on-efforts-to-reduce-gun-violence/

Yousif, N. (2023, March 28). Why number of US mass shootings has risen sharply. BBC News.

Retrieved March 28, 2023, from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-64377360