Democrats in Congress who favor gun control have called for quick votes on measures to ban assault weapons or high-capacity magazines, hoping that the slaying of the 6- and 7-year olds in Newtown might be a tipping point to win over more lawmakers.
U.S. Representative Carolyn McCarthy, whose husband was killed in a mass shooting in 1993, said something has to be done. "There's going to be another killing," she told reporters at the Capitol. "The problem is, they are getting worse and worse."
But so far, the only major Republican legislator who has come out in favor of an assault weapons ban is Senator Scott Brown, a moderate from Massachusetts, who lost his bid for re-election and is leaving office.
The NRA's power is partly due to its large and active membership, which reportedly has been growing rapidly since the Newtown shootings. NRA officials did not immediately comment, but Fox News, citing a source within the organization, said the group has been adding 8,000 new members a day.
(Reporting By Patricia Zengerle; Editing by Claudia Parsons)
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