The White House on Wednesday renewed its call for stricter gun controls in the wake of the fatal shooting near Roanoke, Virginia, of two local journalists while they were broadcasting live on air.

Josh Earnest, Barack Obama’s press secretary, reiterated prior statements on the epidemic of gun violence in America as the nation grappled with the latest shooting to shock the country: the killing of reporter Alison Parker and cameraman Adam Ward of CBS affiliate WDBJ7‎.

Alison Parker and Adam Ward: 'rockstar' reporter and gregarious cameraman Read more

“This is another example of gun violence that is becoming all too common in communities large and small all across the United States,” Earnest told reporters at his daily press briefing.

“While there is no piece of legislation that will end all violence in this country, there are some commonsense things that only Congress can do that we know would have a tangible impact in reducing gun violence in this country.”

Other prominent politicians and advocates against gun violence also joined the call for action, including Democratic presidential frontrunner Hillary Clinton, who tweeted that she was “heartbroken and angry” after the shooting and called for action.

Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) Heartbroken and angry. We must act to stop gun violence, and we cannot wait any longer. Praying for the victims' families in Virginia. -H

The former secretary of state later addressed the shooting while campaigning in Iowa, telling reporters she was “stricken” to think that two young people “would be murdered on live television”.



“We have got to do something about gun violence. And I will take it on,” Clinton said. “There are many people who face it and know it, but then turn away.”

Virginia’s governor, Terry McAuliffe, said he would continue to push for gun control during his time in office, even though he has been stymied by the state legislature in his previous efforts to expand background checks and enact tougher restrictions on firearm purchases.

“I put it up again last year. It never sees the light of day,” McAuliffe, a Democrat, said during an interview with the Washington radio station WTOP. “Everyone who purchases a gun in the Commonwealth of Virginia should have to go through a background check. You go into the store, you hand your license over. It doesn’t take … but three, four, maybe five minutes maximum.”

He added: “There are too many guns in the hands of people that shouldn’t have guns. There is too much gun violence in America.”

Gabrielle Giffords, the former congresswoman who was shot in the head during the 2011 mass shooting in Tucson, Arizona, also chimed in on the horrific nature of a shooting broadcast live to the public.



“Many times, they happen behind close doors, in homes and schools and movie theaters,” Giffords said in a statement with her husband Mark Kelly through their group Americans for Responsible Solutions, which works to fight gun violence. “But this time, the horror unfolded live and on air, for all to see.”

Facebook Twitter Pinterest A composite photograph made available by WDBJ-TV shows reporter Alison Parker, left, and cameraman Adam Ward. Photograph: AP

The familiar statements came after Parker and Ward were shot and killed. Vicki Gardner, a third victim who was being interviewed by Parker for the segment, was in stable condition. Authorities confirmed on Wednesday afternoon that the shooting suspect – a man named Vester Lee Flanagan II, who went by Bryce Williams III – died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

While details were not yet available on how the shooter obtained his weapon, a 23-page document reportedly faxed to ABC News by an individual who identified himself as both Williams and Flanagan contained the ramblings of a troubled individual.

The writer noted that he put a deposit down for a firearm in June, two days after the racially motivated shooting at a historically black church in Charleston, South Carolina. The individual also invoked other American mass shootings – namely the 1999 Columbine high school massacre and the shooting in 2007 at Virginia Tech – to express his admiration for the killers in those incidents.

Earnest said that while the precise details of the shooting were still unfolding, officials from the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) were involved in responding and tracking down the alleged shooter and expected that federal officials would support their state counterparts in the ongoing investigation.

The White House has, in recent years, zeroed in on reducing gun violence as one of its top priorities. Just last month, Obama said that the failure to pass gun safety laws was his “biggest frustration” as president – a sentiment Earnest said on Wednesday continues to stand.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Virginia TV station WDBJ7 airs career highlights of the journalists killed in attack. Link to video

“The president’s views on this certainly haven’t changed,” the White House spokesman said, adding that a “very vocal” minority of the US population “has a lot of sway in Congress when it comes to issues related to guns”.

“The president’s found that disappointing and frustrating, principally because he believes it’s bad public policy for us to not take commonsense steps to address what I think we all acknowledge is a pretty significant problem,” Earnest said.

“The president has also been disappointed that our political system hasn’t responded in the way that he would like. There’s clear majorities in both the Democratic and Republican parties, according to many polls, for these policies. There are even some polls that indicate that there are clear majorities of gun owners that support some of these commonsense steps, but yet we haven’t seen Congress take action and that has been the source of significant frustration.”

Obama made his most significant push for stricter gun laws after the 2012 shooting at Sandy Hook elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut, when a gunman claimed the lives of 20 children and six educators. The US Senate failed to pass universal background checks the following April, despite the support of 90% of Americans, and Congress has since made no effort to revisit the issue despite several high-profile mass shootings over the last two years – a series of them in the last couple of months alone.

Obama has taken limited executive action to curtail gun violence, but Earnest acknowledged on Wednesday that the president “has reached a logical conclusion” that Congress is unlikely to take any action soon.