The Connecticut school massacre: A game-changer for gun control?

"These tragedies must end," says President Obama — but are our politicians actually prepared to do anything?

San Francisco gun buy-back program
(Image credit: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

In what is being seen by many as the finest speech of his presidency, President Obama on Sunday night said he would "use whatever power this office holds" to prevent mass shootings like the school massacre in Newtown, Connecticut. "We can't tolerate this anymore," he said. "These tragedies must end. And to end them, we must change." Obama did not mention boosting gun control specifically, but his message could not have been clearer. "Are we really prepared to say that we're powerless in the face of such carnage, that the politics are too hard?" he asked. "Are we prepared to say that such violence visited on our children year after year after year is somehow the price of our freedom?"

Obama's speech came hours after Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) announced that she would introduce legislation to reinstate a ban on assault weapons that expired under George W. Bush. In addition, Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), a pro-gun senator who has an "A" rating from the National Rifle Association, said it was time for reform. (You may remember that Manchin once aired an ad in which he shot a mock-up of cap-and-trade legislation with a rifle.) Among gun-control advocates, there is a growing sense that the shooting in Newtown was so heinous, so shocking, that it will finally galvanize Congress to take action. "In the wake of the Newtown horror, it looks like we really may see some action towards meaningful gun law reform," says Greg Sargent at The Washington Post:

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Ryu Spaeth

Ryu Spaeth is deputy editor at TheWeek.com. Follow him on Twitter.