President Obama appointed Vice President Joe Biden to lead gun violence task force and asked him to make the task force effective "without delay."
The task force was formed to ensure that no incident like the gun massacres that killed 20 children and six adults at a Connecticut grade school last week happens again, Obama said.
"I will use all the powers of this office to progress the efforts to reduce gun violence, and I won't be able to do it by myself," Obama said at a White House news conference.
The president also asked congress to put aside all political differences and join forces to tackle the issue.
"It will take commitment, compromise, and most important it will take courage," Obama said. "It is going to take a wave of Americans ... standing up and saying 'Enough' on behalf of our kids."
An hour after the gun massacre took place, Obama addressed the nation that "meaningful action" would take place immediately to prevent similar tragedies in the future.
"If there is even one thing we can do to prevent any of these events, we have a deep obligation - all of us - to try," Obama said. "Words need to lead to action."
Before the shooting, Obama had been criticized for not taking gun control actions seriously and putting it on the back burner. The President defended his actions saying he was focusing on other national crises.
"I don't think I've been on vacation," he said.
The Vice President has immediately started working in his newly-appointed role and has been speaking to members of the cabinet and congress. Vice President Biden spoke to New York City Mayor, Michael Bloomberg, Wednesday morning, officials said.
"I was very encouraged by the President's strong statement and his announcement is an important step in the right direction," Bloomberg told reporters. "The country needs his leadership if we are going to reduce the daily bloodshed from gun violence that we have seen for too long."
