Obama pledges to make gun control top priority for 2013

Washington, Dec. 31 (ANI): President Barack Obama has pledged to make gun control a top priority in his second term and vowed to put his 'full weight' behind such legislation.

In an interview with NBC's 'Meet the Press', Obama said that he did like to get it done in the first year, adding that the issue was not something that he will be putting off.

Democratic lawmakers and some Republicans have called for immediate action in the aftermath of the Dec. 14 shootings in which 20 kids were killed in an elementary school in Connecticut, Fox News reports.

According to the report, Obama vowed to rally Americans around an agenda to limit gun violence, adding he still supported increased background checks and bans on assault weapons and high-capacity bullet magazines.

The tragedy immediately prompted calls for greater gun controls, but the NRA strongly resisted those efforts, arguing instead that schools should have armed guards for protection.

The president also said on Sunday that he intended to press the gun issues with the public.

In addition, a member of the president's cabinet said that rural America may be ready to join a national conversation about gun control, the report added. (ANI)