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Both sides of Australian politics agree the US must consider legislating for tougher gun control following the massacre at a Connecticut school. A gunman on Friday shot dead 20 small children and six teachers at the Newtown school, in one of the worst incidents of its kind in US history. Deputy Opposition Leader Julie Bishop told ABC TV she was sure US President Barack Obama, members of Congress and senators would want to debate the issue. "There has to be an end to this kind of senseless killing," she said. "I'm sure there will be a search for the cause,...

CBS's Bob Schieffer made a comment Sunday about the elementary school massacre in Newtown, Connecticut, that's likely to raise eyebrows on both sides of the aisle. During a Face the Nation panel discussion about the incident, Schieffer said, "If [shooter Adam Lanza] had had an Arab name, people would be going nuts about what we ought to do right now" I guess Schieffer forgot how when U.S. Army Major Nidal Hasan murdered thirteen people while injuring 29 at Fort Hood in November 2009, much of the media initially buried his Islamic affiliation. This included the CBS Evening News that day....

Cannot believe what I am hearing? What happened to the Conservative person I used to know. Absoluley disgusting.

Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chairman Steve Israel didn't make any mention of the gun control issue in his statement expressing sympathy for the victims of the tragedy in Connecticut. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call File Photo) Democrats all over Washington issued statements Friday expressing sympathy and dismay over the school shooting in Newtown, Conn. But amid the sadness, grief and shock one thing was clear — most in the Democratic Party did not want to inject a discussion of gun control into the day.Many Democrats blame gun control for Al Gore’s 2000 presidential loss and there has been an increasing reluctance...

President Barack Obama will travel to Newtown, Conn., on Sunday to meet with families of those killed in the shooting rampage at Sandy Hook Elementary School and thank emergency workers who responded to the tragedy, the White House said Saturday. "The President will also speak at an interfaith vigil for families of the victims as well as families" at 7 p.m., press secretary Jay Carney said in a statement. On Friday, an emotional Obama vowed to "take meaningful action, regardless of the politics," to prevent future tragedies like the shooting massacre, which killed 26 people at the school, 20 of...

Attorney General Eric Holder made a few remarks about the massacre at Newtown, Connecticut's Sandy Hook Elementary School that should raise some eyebrows. "As a nation I think we have to ask ourselves some hard questions. We gather too often to talk about these kinds of incidents. We need to discuss who we are as a nation, talk about the freedoms that we have, the rights that we have and how those might be used in a responsible way. But for now I think we should concentrate on dealing with the situation in Connecticut and we are doing, and I...

Terrible news today. When will politicians find courage to ban automatic weapons? As in Oz after similar tragedy. - Rupert Murdoch | Twitter ++++ News Corp. chairman and CEO Rupert Murdoch expressed support for an automatic weapons ban tonight following today's shooting in Newtown, Conn. "Terrible news today. When will politicians find courage to ban automatic weapons?," Murdoch wrote on Twitter. Murdoch made a similar call following the theater shooting in Aurora, Colo., in July: "We have to do something about gun controls. Police license okay for hunting rifle or pistol for anyone without crim or pscho record. No more,"...

Gun-ownership groups were preparing themselves on Friday for another barrage of anti-firearm moves following the horrific mass killing at a Connecticut elementary school. The National Rifle Association and most groups were keeping silent on the day that 28 people, including 20 young children, were shot dead. “Until the facts are thoroughly known, NRA will not have any comment,” the group, based in Fairfax, Va., said in a statement reported by the Atlantic. But some organizations spoke out, including Gun Owners of America, which has about 300,000 members and is headquartered in Springfield, Va. “Gun-control supporters have the blood of little...

In the wake of the deadly Connecticut school shooting, Rep. Carolyn McCarthy said she has warned the White House “the gloves are off” if President Obama fails to act on the issue. McCarthy (D-N.Y.), the foremost gun control advocate in Congress, said she spoke with White House Chief of Staff Jack Lew before Election Day and told him she will exert pressure on the White House to push for gun control legislation. “I said, ‘Jack, I know the president is going through an election and I’m telling you after the election I’m coming out full force,’” McCarthy told POLITICO Friday....

US President Barack Obama wept as he addressed the nation in the aftermath of the school shootings in Connecticut. Mr Obama paused repeatedly as he struggled to keep his composure while speaking of the children who had been killed and the milestones in their lives they would never have - birthdays, graduations, weddings. "Our hearts are broken today," he said, at times using a finger to wipe tears at the corners of his eyes. Mr Obama said he had reacted to news of the elementary school shooting first as a parent. He added that he and First Lady Michelle would...

Barack Obama wiped away tears at the White House as he expressed grief over the children killed in the Connecticut massacre and promised "meaningful action" to prevent similar shooting rampages in the future. Obama has promised to act on gun control after earlier shooting incidents but subsequently done nothing implement any changes. Over the last four years of his presidency, restrictions on guns – in particular concealed weapons – have become more relaxed and gun sales soared. There have been five major shooting sprees since he has been president, three of them this year. This one is different because the...

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg isn't satisfied with President Obama's promise Friday to take "meaningful action" to prevent future mass shootings. "[T]he country needs him to send a bill to Congress to fix this problem – and take immediate executive action,"

A veteran Democratic lawmaker believes the nation will go along with stronger gun control laws if President Obama “exploits” the Newtown, Conn., tragedy and nudges Congress to action. Rep. Jerrold Nadler, who represents portions of New York City, said he was encouraged by Mr. Obama’s statement on Friday afternoon that the mass shooting, which claimed the lives of 20 young children, requires “meaningful action” by Congress, but hopes those words turn into concrete legislation. “These incidents, these horrible, horrible incidents … are happening more and more frequently. And they will continue to happen more and more frequently until someone with...

Today, following the shooting massacre of 20 children in a Connecticut school, President Obama said that "meaningful action" needed to be taken to prevent such tragedies from happening in the future. But what "meaningful action" can Obama actually take, given Republican control of the House and Congress' deeply felt fear of the politically mighty National Rifle Association? And politics aside, what new laws would actually solve or make a dent in the country's crazed-gunman problem? Rep. Jerry Nadler said thinks that the president has only one option. "There’s only one meaningful action he can take, which is to take on...

News Corp. chairman and CEO Rupert Murdoch expressed support for an automatic weapons ban tonight following today's shooting in Newtown, Conn. "Terrible news today. When will politicians find courage to ban automatic weapons?," Murdoch wrote on Twitter. Murdoch made a similar call following the theater shooting in Aurora, Colo., in July: "We have to do something about gun controls. Police license okay for hunting rifle or pistol for anyone without crim or pscho record. No more," he tweeted. News Corp. owns Fox News, where contributors have been objecting to calls for gun control throughout the day.

In one of the worst school shootings in American history, over two dozen were left dead at a Newtown, Connecticut elementary school earlier today. And, although many facts have yet to emerge, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo called for the public to learn from “yet another senseless and horrific act of violence involving guns,” and for the government to act in response. “We as a society must unify and once and for all crack down on the guns that have cost the lives of far too many innocent Americans,” Mr. Cuomo said in a statement. “Let this terrible tragedy finally...

DFL Rep. Keith Ellison appeared on TPT's Almanac tonight to discuss the shooting at an elementary school in Connecticut. During the interview, Ellison argued for greater gun control measures. "The NRA (National Rifle Association) is strong and many of them (members of Congress) take the position that any gun position is going to lead to the position of taking away of all guns," Ellison said. "This is not rational. We need sane, sensible gun regulation and we need it now." Ellison says his top initiatives would be to address high capacity clips that hold multiple rounds of bullets and greater...