President Obama is embracing some degree of gun control in the wake of the deadly shooting in Colorado.

Obama called for increased background checks for those who want to buy guns and more restrictions to keep mentally unbalanced people from buying weapons.

"I, like most Americans, believe that the Second Amendment guarantees an individual the right to bear arms," he said Wednesday day in a speech at the Urban League in New Orleans.

He added that he believed the majority of gun owners "would agree that we should do everything possible to prevent criminals and fugitives from purchasing weapons" and that "a mentally unbalanced individual should not be able to get his hands on a gun so easily." 

"These steps shouldn't be controversial," Obama said. "They should be common sense."

Still, he said he wanted a national consensus on how to stop violence. The president said responsibility for cutting back on bloodshed also rests with parents, neighbors, and teachers.