Assault Weapons Ban Dropped From Senate Gun Control Bill

The leader of the Democrat-controlled Senate on Tuesday dropped a proposed assault weapons ban from the chamber’s gun-control package – dealing a blow to supporters of the ban, though it could still come up for a vote.

The sponsor of the measure, Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., revealed that Reid told her the proposed ban would not be in the initial package. Feinstein said she's "disappointed" with the decision, and is expected to nevertheless offer it as an amendment.

But the move by Reid to cut it from the main bill signals a lack of congressional support for a proposal that would not only revive, but strengthen, the decade-long ban that expired in 2004.

The proposed ban passed was passed last week by the Senate Judiciary Committee, along with three other measures. The others dealt with providing more school safety aid, expanding federal background checks on potential gun buyers and helping authorities prosecute illegal gun traffickers.

Feinstein has led the gun-control charge since President Obama called for federal legislation in the wake of the Newtown and other mass shootings.

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NRA Uses Justice Memo to Accuse Obama on Guns

The National Rifle Association is using a Justice Department memo it obtained to argue in ads that the Obama administration believes its gun control plans won't work unless the government seizes firearms and requires national gun registration — ideas the White House has not proposed and does not support.

The NRA's assertion and its obtaining of the memo in the first place underscore the no-holds-barred battle under way as Washington's fight over gun restrictions heats up.

The memo, under the name of one of the Justice Department's leading crime researchers, critiques the effectiveness of gun control proposals, including some of President Barack Obama's. A Justice Department official called the memo an unfinished review of gun violence research and said it does not represent administration policy.

The memo says requiring background checks for more gun purchases could help, but also could lead to more illicit weapons sales. It says banning assault weapons and high capacity ammunition magazines produced in the future but exempting those already owned by the public, as Obama has proposed, would have limited impact because people now own so many of those items.

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Colorado Prepares for All-Out Gun Fight

Colorado's state legislature is the stage where one of nation's fiercest gun debates will unfold.

A state with a strong tradition of sport shooting and hunting, Colorado is also home to two of the country's deadliest mass shootings.

Recently state legislators have introduced bills on everything from universal background checks, to limiting high-capacity magazines over 10 rounds, to holding gun manufacturers and dealers liable if their products fall into dangerous hands—a bill that actually runs counter to current federal law, which protects gun makers and sellers.

"It's going to be a hard fought and nasty battle," says Tom Mauser, a gun-control activist whose son Daniel was killed at Columbine High School. "The linchpin is that Colorado's been home to two of the worst massacres and the demographics of the state are really changing."

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Obama Take His Gun Control Push on the Road

Continuing his drive to rein in gun violence across the country, President Obama today will visit Minneapolis, a city the White House lauds for having taken "important steps" toward reducing gun crimes.

The president will deliver remarks to local leaders and law enforcement officials about his "comprehensive set of commonsense ideas to reduce gun violence," according to the White House, before meeting with members of the community to discuss their experiences with gun violence, as well as further action that can be taken at the federal level.

Since Mr. Obama undraped a multi-part package of proposals two weeks ago to help tackle the nation's escalating gun violence problem, lawmakers have been scrambling to answer what has largely been a national cry for help following December's massacre at a Newtown, Conn., elementary school. Earlier this week, the Senate Judiciary Committee heard testimony from those lobbying both for and against tighter gun laws, featuring star witnesses Mark Kelly - husband of former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, who survived a shot to the head two years ago during an assassination attempt that left six people dead - and National Rifle Association CEO Wayne LaPierre.

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