Excerpt
JUDY WOODRUFF (Newshour): The United States Senate moved closer today to a showdown over gun legislation. At the same time, supporters of new restrictions from the White House on down tried to step up the pressure.
Today, it was Vice President Joe Biden leading the charge for new gun control laws.
VICE PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: We have an obligation to try. We know, if we do the things we are talking about, we will all save lives. You have all seen the urgency of this issue. And you know what we have to do.
JUDY WOODRUFF: He was joined by Attorney General Eric Holder and law enforcement officers from around the country. And family members of the school shooting victims in Newtown, Connecticut, were on Capitol Hill appealing to lawmakers, the goal, pressuring Congress to act on gun legislation in the face of rising opposition from the National Rifle Association.
The focus, especially in the Senate, has turned to a Democratic bill expanding the federal background check requirement to nearly all gun purchases. President Obama pressed the issue at a speech in Connecticut last night.
PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: And I'm asking everyone listening today, find out where your member of Congress stands on this. If they're not part of the 90 percent of Americans who agree on background checks, then ask them, why not?
Newshour State-by-State Gun Legislation
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