USA: President Barack Obama says the United States has “become numb” to mass shootings like the incident in Oregon, where a 20-year-old gunman killed at least nine people at Umpqua Community College.

Mr Obama challenged voters wanting to deal with the problem to vote for elected officials who agree with that priority.

He has had no success throughout his almost seven years in the White House in getting Congress to tighten laws involving firearms.

The president noted that this was not his first appearance before reporters to pass on his condolences to the families and friends of the fallen in mass shootings.

These incidents have become frequent in the life of America. Over the past several years, Obama has travelled to Aurora, Colorado; Tucson, Arizona; Charleston, South Carolina, and many other cities to mourn victims of gun violence.

President Obama said the nation’s response to mass shootings has become “routine” – from the reporting by the media, to his own comments, to the opposition to gun control laws.

Mr Obama spoke at times with anger in his voice and the muscles in his jaw tensed up as he seemed to struggle to find the right words.

He said it is clear that anyone responsible for such carnage has a sickness in his mind.

He said other nations also have mentally ill residents who want to harm others, but the United States is alone in the type of problem it faces.

“We are the only advanced country that sees these kinds of mass shootings every few months,” Mr Obama added.