Six months after the shooting in Tucson that killed six people and wounded Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., the Obama administration has yet to move on new gun control legislation.
That could change soon.
White House spokesman Jay Carney said a special task force has been "working through these complex issues, and we expect to have some more specific announcements in the near future."
Gun control organizations such as the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence have pressed the Obama administration since the Giffords shooting and have been critical of what they call a lack of action.
Gun rights advocates such as the National Rifle Association have said the Giffords shooting should not be used as an excuse to infringe on the rights of legitimate gun owners.
Carney said a variety of views are being taken into account as the administration looks at efforts to prevent mass shootings.
"The president directed the attorney general to form working groups with key stakeholders to identify common-sense measures that would improve American safety and security while fully respecting Second Amendment rights," Carney said.
In a March op-ed for the Arizona Daily Star, Obama said he wanted to focus on strengthening background checks so criminals or mentally ill people could not get weapons. He wrote:
I know that every time we try to talk about guns, it can reinforce stark divides. People shout at one another, which makes it impossible to listen. We mire ourselves in stalemate, which makes it impossible to get to where we need to go as a country.
However, I believe that if common sense prevails, we can get beyond wedge issues and stale political debates to find a sensible, intelligent way to make the United States of America a safer, stronger place.
I'm willing to bet that responsible, law-abiding gun owners agree that we should be able to keep an irresponsible, law-breaking few -- dangerous criminals and fugitives, for example -- from getting their hands on a gun in the first place.
I'm willing to bet they don't think that using a gun and using common sense are incompatible ideas - that we should check someone's criminal record before he can check out at a gun seller; that an unbalanced man shouldn't be able to buy a gun so easily; that there's room for us to have reasonable laws that uphold liberty, ensure citizen safety and are fully compatible with a robust Second Amendment.
That's why our focus right now should be on sound and effective steps that will actually keep those irresponsible, law-breaking few from getting their hands on a gun in the first place.
The Oval
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