AP
He was joined at the White House by children who wrote to him pleading for action in the wake of the shootings.
Mr Obama called for a ban on assault weapons, like the rifle used at Sandy Hook, and high-capacity magazines along with wider background checks on gun buyers.
The Democratic President also signed 23 executive orders which he said would curb “the epidemic of gun violence in this country”.
He faces one of the fiercest battles of his career to get the ban on military-style weapons and ammo through Congress.
The pro-guns lobby immediately hit back with an incendiary advert trying to paint him as a hypocrite because his children have armed guards.
But Mr Obama said that doing nothing was not an option after the elementary schools killings in Newtown, Connecticut, last month.
Crazed gunman Adam Lanza slaughtered 20 pupils, including British youngster Dylan Hockley, and six teaching staff before turning his gun on himself
Mr Obama said: “While there is no law or set of laws that can prevent every senseless act of violence completely, no piece of legislation that will prevent every tragedy, every act of evil, if there’s even one thing we can do to reduce this violence, if there’s even one life that can be saved, then we’ve got an obligation to try.”
The President admitted he faces a tough battle to get the weapons ban, universal background checks and anti-gun trafficking laws passed into law.
“This will be difficult,” he said. “I will put everything I’ve got into this.”
The proposals were produced by a task force headed by Vice-President Joe Biden and groups from across the political spectrum
America’s top gun lobby, the National Rifle Association (NRA), was consulted but has repeatedly vowed to fight any attempts to limit access to guns or ammunition.
In the days after the Sandy Hook shootings, the NRA proposed stationing armed guards in every school in America instead.
The Association today released an ad on the internet attacking the President as “an elitist hypocrite” for opposing the move while his daughters are protected by armed guards at their school.
The White House condemned the ad as “repugnant and cowardly”.
What Obama wants
?to reintroduce an expired ban on “military-style” assault weapons, such as those used in several recent mass shootings?limit ammunition magazines to 10 rounds
?introduce background checks on all gun sales; currently private sales and some sales at gun shows, constituting about 40% of the national total, are exempt
?pass a ban on possession and sale of armour-piercing bullets
?introduce harsher penalties for gun-traffickers, especially unlicensed dealers who buy arms for criminals
The US President called for a ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines along with wider background checks on gun buyers
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