Biden mourns Indianapolis shooting, says gun violence has 'become too normal'

President Joe Biden on Friday offered his condolences to the families who lost loved ones in the mass shooting at a FedEx facility in Indianapolis, and reiterated his alarm about the “epidemic” of gun violence in the U.S. and the need for stricter control measures.

“Last night and into the morning in Indianapolis, yet again families had to wait to hear word about the fate of their loved ones. What a cruel wait and fate that has become too normal and happens every day somewhere in our nation,” Biden said in a statement issued by the White House on Friday afternoon.

Biden said he and Vice President Kamala Harris had been briefed by their homeland security team on the shooting and had ordered flags lowered to half-staff at White House, public buildings and grounds, and military posts and embassies, “just two weeks after I gave the last such order.”

At least eight people were killed after a gunman opened fire at a FedEx facility in Indianapolis late Thursday before also killing himself, police said. Multiple other people were taken to hospitals with injuries, police said.

The massacre was just the latest in a series of mass shooting incidents in the U.S. in recent weeks, including an April 8 shooting at a cabinet company facility in Bryan, Texas, a March 22 shooting at a grocery store in Boulder, Colo., a series of shootings on March 16 at Atlanta-area spas.

“Gun violence is an epidemic in America. But we should not accept it. We must act,” Biden said. “Too many Americans are dying every single day from gun violence. It stains our character and pierces the very soul of our nation.”

Later Friday, during a White House press conference alongside the prime minister of Japan, Biden slammed the ongoing gun violence in the U.S. as a "national embarrassment."

Responding to a question about gun violence, Biden said, "No one has worked harder to deal with the violence used by individuals using weapons than I have," but called on Congress to "step up and act."

Harris, in remarks about the Indianapolis shooting, said earlier Friday that, “yet again, we have families in our country that are grieving the loss of their family members because of gun violence.”

“There is no question that this violence must end. And we are thinking of the families that lost their loved ones,” Harris said during a bilateral meeting at the White House with Japan's prime minister.

Last week, Biden announced a series of executive actions aimed at reducing mass shootings, suicides and domestic violence.

They included limiting so-called "ghost guns," which can be assembled at home without traceable serial numbers, and model laws to make it easier for relatives to flag family members who shouldn't be allowed to buy firearms.