U.S. President Joe Biden pledged on Wednesday to go after illegal gun dealers and boost federal funding and support for local law enforcement as homicide rates have spiked in large cities.

"Merchants of death are breaking the law for profit," Biden said, adding the administration will have "zero tolerance" for rogue firearms dealers violating federal laws.

Biden was to announce further details of the strategy during a televised address following a meeting with civil and law enforcement leaders.

His plan addresses five main elements, including the need to "stem the flow of firearms used to commit violence."

It also enables state and local jurisdictions to use unspent portions of the COVID-19 recovery funds to pay for new police hires, upgrades in equipment and expand efforts to prosecute gun traffickers.

Biden announced that the administration would collaborate with 15 cities that are committing to use some leftover pandemic funding – including Los Angeles, Atlanta, Baltimore and the capital Washington D.C. – in anticipation of potential spikes in violent crimes in the summer months.

Surge in gun violence

Gun rights, protected by the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, are among the thorniest political issues in America, where the rate of gun deaths exceeds other wealthy countries.

In 2020, homicides in large U.S. cities rose by 30 percent from a year earlier while gun assaults rose by 8 percent, with the fastest rate being in big cities, including Chicago and Houston, the White House said, citing a report by the nonpartisan research group the Council on Criminal Justice.

This year, 20,989 Americans died of gun violence as of June 23, more than half through suicide, according to the Gun Violence Archive, a research group.

Difference on gun control

Many Democrats have for years sought to pass tougher gun control measures. But the efforts have repeatedly failed since the 2012 shooting at a Connecticut elementary school where 26 people died, with Republicans often uniting in opposition to such legislation.

U.S. gun sales soared in 2020 during the coronavirus pandemic, amid social unrest over police killings of Black people and a contested presidential election.

The House of Representatives passed two bills in March aimed at enhancing background checks and closing a loophole related to a deadly 2015 church shooting in Charleston, South Carolina. But they are unlikely to pass the Senate.

Republicans, keen to make violent crime a campaign issue in next year's midterm elections as they seek to win back the House and Senate, are highlighting how crime has skyrocketed in Biden's America.

"President Biden's answer: Propose even more gun control measures today that only harm law-abiding citizens," House Republican Richard Hudson tweeted. "Instead of gun control, we need to support our good police officers and end this #BidenCrimeCrisis."

With Congress unable to agree on broad new gun regulations, Biden took action in April, signing six executive orders, including a measure to stop the proliferation of "ghost guns" – homemade firearms built from home kits.

(Cover: U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks after a roundtable discussion with advisors on steps to curtail U.S. gun violence at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., June 23, 2021. /Reuters)

(With input from AFP, Reuters)