N.Y.'s Cuomo pushing hard for one of nation's toughest gun laws
A deal that would give New York one of the toughest gun control laws in the nation was being sought by Gov. Andrew Cuomo who, sources told CBS New York station WCBS-TV, was hoping to announce the plan Wednesday during his State of the State address.
The sources said Cuomo was negotiating furiously with legislative leaders in an attempt to reach a deal before the address.
The measures would be a response to gun violence in the U.S., including the tragic shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., in which 26 children and adults were killed.
Sources said the package was expected to include new restrictions on assault weapons, stiffer penalties for using a gun to commit a crime, and new limits on the number of bullets in a gun magazine.
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Cuomo's move comes as New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg's Mayors Against Gun Violence released a new commercial to push for federal action.
It features Roxanna Green, the mother of Christina Taylor-Green, who was killed two years ago Tuesday in the Tucson, Ariz., massacre in which former Rep. Gabby Giffords was wounded.
"How many more children must die before Washington does something to end our gun violence problem?" Roxanna Green asks in the ad.
It would be quite a coup for Cuomo, a potential 2016 presidential candidate, to show progress on gun control as Washington stays divided on the controversial topic.
Late Tuesday night, a Cuomo spokesman said the sides still had not reached an agreement, but sources said there was talk of keeping the legislature in session the rest of the week to make sure a deal gets done.