White House Disputes that Most Americans Disagree with Its Planned Exec. Actions on Guns

UNKNOWN FEMALE: "I know there have been [indecipherable] and attempts to act on this and they did fail in the normal course of events, or you can say the way the system is supposed to work, and also the way the system is supposed to work, that kind of congressional action would be informed by public opinion. We have a record of these attempts on a bipartisan basis failing and the public opinion is showing a majority of Americans oppose stricter gun laws. So are all of those people wrong?"

EARNEST: "Michelle, I think the polls indicate there is strong support for common sense steps that Congress could take. For example, closing what is often referred to as the gun show loophole, essentially ensuring that everybody that tries to purchase a firearm at a gun show or gun store on the Internet has to undergo a background check. According to a recent poll, 84 percent of voters in households with guns support requiring background checks in gun purchases at gun shows or online. People have been conducting polls of Republicans a lot lately, not sure why that is, he said jokingly, but recent polls indicate three out of four Iowa Republicans support barring people or requiring criminal background checks for all gun purchases. A similar number applies to New Hampshire Republicans. 81 percent of New Hampshire Republicans supports background checks on all gun purchases. So this is not something that is just a partisan endeavor. This is also not something that has been advanced by the people who are strong advocates of gun control. Gun owners and Republicans overwhelmingly support, at least this common sense step, closing the gun show loophole. There are similar statistics that apply to congressional action that would prevent those individuals who are on the no-fly list from being able to buy a gun. That is a pretty common sense step if the government has determined it's too dangerous for you to board an airplane that you shouldn’t purchase a firearm. About three out of four Republicans surveyed recently came to the same conclusion and agree with that notion. And I know that there is at least one Republican candidate for president who has articulated his support for that."