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Carper says tighter gun control, continued military action needed after Orlando massacre

Sen. Tom Carper (D) is calling for a continued assault on ISIS after a Florida man who had pledged his allegiance to the terrorist group killed 49 people in a gay nightclub over the weekend.

Carper says a joint military campaign has significantly damaged ISIS’s leadership organization and their resource supplies over the past few months.

That’s something he attributes to the decline of people traveling to Syria to join ISIS, likening it to fair weather fans for sports teams.

Carper also notes stronger gun control measures should be in place, though the shooter, Omar Mateen, had bought the two guns used in the attack legally.

“Whether we think we can actually pass legislation that denies somebody on a watch list the ability to buy – at least assault weapons – that’s a shot we should take,” he said.

FBI agents investigated Mateen on two separate occasions, but cleared him of terrorist connections both times and he wasn’t on any watch list.

He pledged allegiance to ISIS in a 911 call shortly before he slaughtered dozens of people at Pulse in Orlando, though officials say he wasn’t trained or directed by the organization.

Despite the investigations, Mateen had a valid license to buy firearms and worked for a security company.

“I want to know more about the license, the state license that he was applying for to be a security officer and what kind of background check did that entail," Carper said.

Carper will receive further security briefings later today.