New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Sunday that in the wake of Friday’s school massacre in Connecticut, President Obama should take immediate steps to better enforce the nation’s gun laws and lead the effort for new regulations.
“The president should console the country, but he’s the commander-in-chief as well as the consoler-in-chief,” Mr. Bloomberg said in an appearance on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “It’s time for the president to stand up and lead … not go to Congress and say, ‘What do you guys want to do?’”
The mayor, a billionaire and a registered independent, is a longtime advocate of tougher gun laws.
He formed his own political action committee this past year to support candidates across the country who backed tighter gun laws.
“This should be his No. 1 agenda,” the mayor said.
The mayor dismissed the idea that gun rights organizations such as the National Rifle Association pose a serious political threat to politicians who want to restrict gun rights.
“Today, the NRA’s power is so vastly overrated. The public, when you do the polls, they want to stop this carnage. And if 20 kids isn’t enough to convince ‘em, I don’t know what would be,” Mr. Bloomberg said, referring to the number of children killed in Friday’s Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.
