Hillary Clinton makes strong plea for gun control

 San Francisco, June-21  Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton made a stirring plea for "common-sense" gun control Saturday.

"The passing of days has not dulled the pain or shock of this crime," Clinton said, in her most extensive comments yet on the tragedy Wednesday that left nine dead in Charleston, S.C.

"As a mother, grandmother and fellow human being, my heart is bursting for the victims, a wounded community and a wounded church," she said in a passionate 30-minute address to American mayors gathered here.

"It makes no sense that bipartisan legislation fails in Congress despite overwhelming public support," Clinton said. "The politics on this position have been poisoned. I will not be afraid to fight for common-sense reforms … because of this senseless gun violence."

"How is it possible that we as a nation allow guns to fall into the hands of people whose hearts are filled with hate?" she said, voice rising. "We can have common-sense gun reforms that keep them out of the hands of criminals and the mentally unstable while not penalizing responsible gun owners," Clinton said to sustained applause. (Half of the audience of about 1,000 stood.)

The shooting spree at the predominately black church in Charleston, the latest in a string of disturbing incidents in America over the past few years, underscores an intolerant nation deeply in need of healing and understanding, she said.

"Race remains a deep fault line in America," Clinton said, pointing to ongoing discrimination, disparity in pay, illegal housing and other social chasms.

Citing former Atlanta mayor Andrew Young in the audience, Clinton said America needs to emulate that city's slogan when he was mayor — a city too busy to hate.

"What we need more of in this country is love and kindness," a resolute Clinton said.

She spoke to civic leaders gathered for the U.S. Conference of Mayors here this weekend.

Tech is a hot topic at the conference, which kicked off Friday with pointed remarks from President Obama on the shooting rampage in Charleston.

If Congress passed what Obama called "common-sense" gun safety, the assembled mayors might have had to attend fewer funerals, Obama said.

It was Obama's 20th visit to San Francisco, where tech is the dominant industry in the region and a major source for fundraising. The president successfully tapped into it twice as a presidential candidate, and Clinton is likely to do the same in her 2016 bid.

A key piece of her presidential bid is to help "build an economy for tomorrow," Clinton said Saturday.

Ride-hailing service Uber is sponsoring the conference, where Cities 3.0 is a major theme. A tour of Uber's downtown San Francisco headquarters was scheduled for Monday.

Executives from Airbnb and Salesforce.com are also scheduled to appear at the four-day summit.

Source: usatoday