Spotlight: Obama to force through gun control measures

U.S. President Barack Obama is to roll out a set of gun-control measures on Tuesday amid strong opposition from the Republican Party, a defiant show of executive resolution in his last year at the White House.

The move aims to curb gun violence by regulating gun sales and controlling illicit firearms purchases.

According to Attorney General Loretta Lynch, tighter rules will be enforced, including a mandatory register as a gun trader, a narrower loophole that allows buyers to dodge background checks and a crackdown on purchases through intermediaries.

While Obama stressed that the measures will be "entirely consistent" with the constitutional right to bear arms, Republicans, gun makers and weapons enthusiasts argue that the move is a serious infringement of the Second Amendment.

According to the president, although the steps will not solve every violent crime or prevent every mass shooting, it will potentially save lives and spare families the pain and extraordinary loss as a consequence of firearms being in the wrong hands.

In his weekly radio address on Friday, Obama blasted Congress for failing to act on curbing gun violence.

"We know that we can't stop every act of violence. But what if we tried to stop even one? What if Congress did something -- anything -- to protect our kids from gun violence?" he asked.

However, by acting against the will of the Republicans who control Congress, Obama is facing an uphill battle.

Paul Ryan, speaker of the House of Representatives, on Monday blasted Obama for his "dismissiveness" toward Americans who value the constitutional right to bear arms.

"We all are pained by the recent atrocities in our country, but no change the president is reportedly considering would have prevented them," said Ryan, arguing that an underlying cause of those attacks has been mental illness.

Polls showed that most Americans back tougher gun laws. But there has been a decline in that support since concerns over the Islamic State group and the wider threat from terrorism have been mounting.

The United States recorded 351 gun attacks in the first 11 months in 2015, with 1.05 cases everyday on average, reported The Washington Post.

Such shootings exposed loose gun control policy featuring easy access to guns and wide spread of privately owned guns.

On Thursday, Obama will participate in a live Town Hall event with CNN's Anderson Cooper on reducing gun violence in the country. Endi