President Obama visits families of UCC shooting victims

President Barack Obama made good Friday on his pledge to visit families of last week’s shooting victims at a community college in Oregon – a trip that many have questioned.

After last Thursday’s mass shooting at the college, Obama renewed his call for tougher gun laws.

But the father of one girl shot in the back but who survived by playing dead accused Obama of politicising the tragedy and said he had declined an invitation to meet him.

The other half were negative or seemed to be protesting his calls action to tighten the nation’s gun laws. And gun-rights supporters plan to protest during Obama’s visit. “Please come show your support for Roseburg, not the little man who has no respect for the Constitution”. Vicki Hart was one of several hundred protesters who lined a street near the Roseburg airport.

That was an apparent reference to Obama’s statement last week that “our thoughts and prayers are not enough”, and that new gun controls are needed.

Just before leaving Roseburg, he told a small group of reporters: “We’re going to have to come together as a country, but today is about the families”.

“It’s not that we are bloodthirsty, it’s that we want to protect ourselves and our families”, he said.

No such measure would have provided a safeguard in the Oregon shooting, in which a gunman killed nine people on campus on 1 October and injured nine others before taking his own life.

Obama got on the presidential helicopter for a short flight to Roseburg, about 70 miles south of Eugene. Just as we learn the President is exploring the use of executive authority to close gun loopholes.

Reports suggest there are as many as 300million guns already in circulation in the U.S. and many Americans quote the Second Amendment of the Constitution as justifying their right to “bear arms”. He then placed his hand gently on Oregon Gov. Kate Brown’s back as they walked to his limo.

Marsh is a family friend of 18-year-old Rebecka Ann Carnes, who was killed in the shooting.

David Jaques, publisher of the weekly Roseburg Beacon, told Fox News’ Bill O’Reilly on Monday that local officials didn’t want Obama to visit. But there are going to be I think moments as we go forward where we’re going to have to come together and figure out how do we stop things like this from happening.

But she added the majority of people in Roseburg and the surrounding areas believe “this is a mental health issue….”

This week, he carried through with that intention, flying to Oregon to meet with the parents of the victims from Umpqua Community College.

“I’ve got a few very strong feelings about this”, said a somber Obama, speaking so low he could barely be heard.

“He’s not welcome to politicize our tragedy for his agenda”, Harju said. “We wish to be clear that Mayor [Larry] Rich, City Council President [Tom] Ryan and the Roseburg City Council welcome the president to Roseburg and will extend him every courtesy”.