Obama addresses U.S. mayors on youth violence

WASHINGTON, Aug. 27 (UPI) -- President Obama told a gathering of U.S. mayors Tuesday government alone can't solve the problem of youth violence but does have a role to play.

Obama and U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder met in Washington with the mayors of 18 major cities to go over ways to reduce youth violence, a White House statement said.

"The president reiterated that government alone can never fill the void that causes a child to turn to violence, but that we all have a responsibility to do our part to create safe communities and save lives," the White House statement said. "The president applauded the mayors for their local efforts to combat violence, solicited their input about proven methods and pledged his administration's partnership.

"He also vowed to continue doing everything in his power to combat gun violence through executive action and to press Congress to pass common-sense reforms like expanding the background check system and cracking down on gun trafficking."

The White House said the mayors on hand for the meeting were Greg Ballard of Indianapolis, Tom Barrett of Milwaukee, Cory Booker of Newark, N.J., Vincent Gray of Washington, Sly James of Kansas City, Mo., Kevin Johnson of Sacramento, Mitch Landrieu of New Orleans, Mark Mallory of Cincinnati, Michael Nutter of Philadelphia, Annise Parker of Houston, Jean Quan of Oakland, Calif., Stephanie Rawlings-Blake of Baltimore, Kasim Reed of Atlanta, R.T. Rybak of Minneapolis, Francis Slay of St. Louis, Dayne Walling of Flint, Mich., Molly Ward of Hampton, Va., and A.C. Wharton of Memphis.