(AP) Lawmakers look to restrict gun magazine capacity
By KEVIN FREKING
Associated Press
WASHINGTON
Lawmakers from both parties voiced their willingness Sunday to pursue some changes to the nation’s gun laws, but adamant opposition from the National Rifle Association has made clear than any such effort will face significant obstacles.
NRA CEO Wayne LaPierre dismissed efforts to revive a ban on assault weapons as a “phony piece of legislation” that’s built on lies.
Democratic lawmakers in Congress have become more adamant about the need for stricter gun laws since the shooting of 20 children and six teachers at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California is promising to push for a renewal of expired legislation that banned certain weapons and limited the number of bullets a gun magazine could hold to 10.
Both lawmakers appeared on CBS’ “Face the Nation,” where NRA President David Keene said lawmakers were asking the wrong question when discussing how many rounds a gun magazine should have.
The right question, he said: “Can we keep guns out of the hands of people who are potential killers?”
LaPierre made clear it was highly unlikely that the NRA could support any new gun regulations.
Instead, LaPierre reiterated the group’s support for putting police officers in every school.
Sen. Joe Lieberman, a Connecticut independent, said he found the NRA’s statements in recent days to be “really disheartening.” Still, he said he agrees with some of the points the group has made about the causes behind violence in America.
Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said LaPierre was “so extreme and so tone deaf” that he was making it easier to pass gun legislation.
Lieberman said the NRA’s stand on new gun rules means passing legislation next year won’t happen easily.