Biden: 'I've Been to Every Mass Shooting.' CNN: Not 'Even Close' (September 22, 2023)

In the Rose Garden, President Joe Biden announced a new White House office on gun violence and made a claim about himself. “After every mass shooting, we hear a simple message, the same message heard all over the country, and I’ve been to every mass shooting: Do something,” he said [1].

He had not. “Biden has not been to even close to ‘every’ mass shooting site – even if he was referring only to mass shootings during his presidency,” CNN fact-checker Daniel Dale wrote that day [2].

The video above shows Biden’s Sept. 22, 2023, remarks on the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention. Quotes are from the official transcript published by the American Presidency Project [1].

One Trip in 2023

CNN counted the trips. “Biden has made one trip this year in connection to a specific mass shooting. He made three such trips in 2021 and 2022 combined,” Dale wrote [2].

He listed places Biden did not go, including “a mall in Allen, Texas,” “farms in Half Moon Bay, California,” “a Christian school in Nashville,” “a bank in Louisville, Kentucky,” “a Walmart in Chesapeake, Virginia,” and “a parade in Highland Park, Illinois” [2].

Biden’s own speech undercut the claim minutes later. “In 2023 so far, our country has experienced more than 500 mass shootings and well over 30,000 deaths due to gun violence,” he said [1]. At the time, CNN reported, the Gun Violence Archive “listed 506 such shootings in 2023” [2].

Others went in his place. “Vice President Kamala Harris visited Highland Park after the shooting there, while first lady Jill Biden visited Nashville in the wake of that shooting,” CNN noted [2].

“The White House declined to comment Friday on the president’s inaccurate claim,” CNN reported [2].

”Along With a Woman in California”

Biden also touted the 1994 assault weapons ban, without naming its author. “And by the way, I was the guy—along with a woman in California—who also—we once banned assault weapons and multiple magazines. We’re going to do it again,” he said [1].

The “woman in California” was Sen. Dianne Feinstein. A week later, Biden’s statement on her death said she “led the fight to ban assault weapons” [3].

“827 Years Ago”

Biden joked about his age after Rep. Maxwell Frost, whom he called “this proud, young, new Congressman,” introduced him. “I got elected to the Senate when I was 29 years old. Only difference was, he was eligible when he got elected to take office; I had to wait 17 days to be eligible. That was 827 years ago, but it was a while,” Biden said, to laughter [1].

He named Stef Feldman as director, joking that she “was 13 years old when she joined me” [1]. And he put Vice President Kamala Harris in charge. The office “will be overseen by an incredible Vice President, who understands this more than any Vice President has,” he said. “No, really. That’s not hyperbole, that’s a fact” [1].

”On the Ballot”

The new office, Biden said, would “identify new executive actions we can take within our legal authority to reduce gun violence” and would help survivors “the same way FEMA responds to natural disasters.” “Look, folks, shootings are the ultimate superstorm, ripping through communities,” he said [1].

He repeated a statistic: “Guns are the number-one killer of children in America—the United States of America. More than car accidents, more than cancer, more than other diseases” [1].

Then he made it political. “And let me be very clear: If Members of the Congress refuse to act, then we’ll need to elect new Members of Congress that will act. Democrat or Republican,” Biden said [1].

“We’ve reached that point today, in my view, where the safety of our kids from gun violence is on the ballot,” he said [1].

Ground Zero “the Next Day”

CNN noted a pattern. “Biden has repeatedly invented or embellished aspects of his travel history and other elements of his biography,” Dale wrote [2].

The week before, Dale wrote, Biden “falsely claimed he went to Ground Zero in Manhattan ‘the next day’ after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001; he was actually at the site nine days after the attacks” [2].

By the Numbers

1: trips Biden made in 2023 tied to a specific mass shooting, per CNN [2].
3: such trips in 2021 and 2022 combined [2].
506: mass shootings in 2023 at the time, per the Gun Violence Archive as cited by CNN [2].
9 days: after the 9/11 attacks that Biden actually visited Ground Zero, per CNN [2].
1 week: from “a woman in California” to Feinstein’s death [1][3].

What Happened Next

Feinstein died. On Sept. 29, 2023, Biden called her “a pioneering American, a true trailblazer, and for Jill and me, a cherished friend” [3].

Trump reversed course on guns. On Feb. 7, 2025, President Donald Trump signed an order declaring that “the right to keep and bear arms must not be infringed” [4].

It told the attorney general to review Biden-era actions, including “Reports and related documents issued by the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention” [4].

For Biden’s other gun claims that CNN and the NRA fact-checked, see HYGO News’ page on his “worst abuse” speech.