Scoop: Neguse, McBath press Biden to appoint national gun violence czar

Rep. Joe Neguse (D-Colo.) and Rep. Lucy McBath (D-Ga.) will ask President Biden to appoint a national director of gun violence prevention, Axios has learned.

Why it matters: The issue — which resonates in Colorado with its dark legacy of mass shootings — comes days after the White House began to push forward on an issue activists wanted to see prioritized in his first month.  

• "If we are not doing everything we can to ensure another Columbine, another Aurora, another Highlands Ranch, does not happen again, then we are not doing enough," Neguse said in a statement.

What they're saying: In the letter, Neguse and McBath tell Biden that "a comprehensive government approach to address this violence, will help bring our nation out from under the depths of the gun violence crisis."

• The pair notes that "disproportionate shares of this violence [fall] on communities of color" and that those who lost their lives to gun violence jumped 10% in 2020 from 2019.
• They highlight that "federal efforts to combat gun violence, including research on the impacts and causes of gun violence and law enforcement efforts to combat it, are siloed across agencies."

This story first appeared in the Axios Denver newsletter, designed to help readers get smarter, faster on the most consequential news unfolding in their own backyard.