Father of Parkland shooting victim criticizes Biden White House celebrating gun control bill
Gun control advocate Manuel Oliver appeared on CNN hours before he publicly called out President Biden at his event celebrating the gun legislation he signed last month.
President Biden’s celebratory Monday speech about the gun policy bill he signed last month was interrupted by the father of Parkland shooting victim, Manuel Oliver, who also appeared on CNN earlier in the day to criticize the bill.
Oliver, who was escorted out of the event after shouting as Biden was speaking, is the father of Joaquin Oliver, one of the victims of the Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in 2018.
Biden paused during his remarks when Oliver's interruption began and attempted to get him to relent before the man was removed. "Sit down and hear what I have to say," Biden said on the South Lawn of the White House. "Let me finish my comment."
BIDEN GUN CONTROL SPEECH INTERRUPTED BY FATHER OF PARKLAND SHOOTING VICTIM
Manuel Oliver, the father of a child who died during the Parkland, Fla., school shooting, is escorted out of an event on the White House South Lawn after interrupting President Biden's remarks on gun control. (Mark Meredith/Fox News)
"You have to do more than this!" Oliver yelled. "You have to open an office in the White House!"
Oliver had previously made it clear he didn’t consider the bill anything special. Before attending Biden’s speech, Oliver appeared on CNN’s "New Day," where he indicated he was not a fan of the White House "celebrating." The White House touted the event as a celebration, calling the bipartisan Safer Communities Act the most significant gun legislation in 30 years.
"Well, it’s been a while that I’ve been calling out that using the word celebration, getting together, [it's] like we’re going to a party, to a wedding today. We all received these invitations, meanwhile, you can see these mothers in Uvalde that just saw how their kids were massacred inside a school," Oliver said.
"So, for me, it’s not only not enough, what we’re passing, and you know very well what I’ve been preaching for. Even the president asked for more, and it’s not happening. So, I really wish there was more in this package of bills," Oliver continued. "I will do whatever I can to get more in this package of bills. This is not the beginning or the end. A lot of people are saying this is the beginning. No, this is part of a process. There was no reason for this event to be called as it’s called right now. Like, ‘we are celebrating again together right now in the White House,’ there is no space for that word."
President Biden's remarks on gun control are interrupted by Manuel Oliver, the father of a child who died during the Parkland, Florida, school shooting. (Mark Meredith/Fox News)
Hecklers or protestors during a presidential speech are rare due to strict security measures at the White House. A protestor in 2006 interrupted an event with former President George W. Bush and then-Chinese President Hu Jintao, earning her criminal charges.
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During his remarks, Biden discussed the damage that assault weapons can do to people and the requirements for military members before they are given weapons. He said that it doesn't make sense civilians are allowed to have the same weapons.
"Makes no sense. Assault weapons need to be banned. They were banned," Biden said. "I'm determined to ban these weapons again."
People participate in the second March for Our Lives rally in support of gun control in front of the Washington Monument, June 11, 2022, in Washington. The rally is a successor to the 2018 march organized by student protesters after the mass shooting at a high school in Parkland, Florida. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
Oliver previously expressed similar criticism on social media.
"The word CELEBRATION has no space in a society that saw 19 kids massacred just a month ago," Oliver tweeted. "'Most people overestimate what they can do in one year and underestimate what they can do in ten years.' Not me, not Joaquin."
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Fox News’ Tyler Olson and Mark Meredith contributed to this report.
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