Obama to hit road to push gun violence plan

WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama will hit the road Monday to appear with local leaders and law enforcement officials in Minnesota to push his plan to cut gun violence, which faces a tough road in Congress.

Obama will visit Minneapolis, a city that has taken steps to tackle firearms violence, including a background check system similar to one the president is proposing for the entire country.

The president has taken 23 executive actions and challenged Congress to pass new laws, including renewing a ban on assault weapons and closing loopholes that permit 40 percent of gun sales to take place without background checks.

Obama made the measures to stem murderous firearms violence a centerpiece of his second term agenda, after America was traumatized by the massacre of 20 children and six adults at a school in Newtown, Connecticut in December.

The president's measures are vehemently opposed by the firearms lobby, including the National Rifle Association, which has demanded armed guards for all schools in the United States.

Many Republicans, and some conservative Democrats, also oppose the initiative, arguing that Obama's plans are simply a veiled attempt to infringe on Americans' constitutionally enshrined right to bear arms.