New York Daily News

January 2, 2006:
Pledge to carry gun battle across nation
By DAVID SALTONSTAL, DAILY NEWS CITY HALL BUREAU CHIEF

Once content to rule the city, Mayor Bloomberg yesterday vowed for the first time to go national - with an all-out effort to crack down on illegal gun sales.

With the shooting deaths of two NYPD cops still weighing on the city - and with his confidence as a political player clearly rising - Bloomberg promised in his second term to fight the fight over illegal handguns in every forum that matters.

"We will take our message to Albany, to Washington and to every capital of every state that permits guns to flow freely across its borders," said Bloomberg.

"And to those who distort our laws to aid and abet hardened criminals, know this," he said, punching the air for emphasis. "We will not rest until we secure all of the tools we need to protect New Yorkers from the scourge of illegal guns."

Although Bloomberg has talked before about the need for stricter gun controls, yesterday was the first time he pledged to do battle in individual statehouses throughout the U.S.

The new push underscored the growing sense of urgency in the city surrounding illegal firearms, which helped fuel a 3% increase in shooting victims last year.

But it also reflected a mayor who, after four years of mostly learning the political ropes in New York, is confident enough to take his game to the national level, experts said.

Gun control advocates said that as the Republican mayor of the country's largest city - and one of the GOP's most generous donors - Bloomberg could be uniquely positioned to influence the national gun control debate.

"If he can make an alliance of governors and mayors - particularly Republican governors and mayors - it could greatly help us," said Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), an author of the Brady Bill, which requires background checks for handgun purchases. "We haven't had a major Republican voice speaking out for gun control in a long time."

No matter what, with a Texas Republican in the White House and the National Rifle Association still among the biggest givers in Congress, it will be an uphill fight, Schumer added.

NRA officials could not be reached for comment yesterday, but Bloomberg is already in the group's sights.

When the mayor talked last month about the need to tighten gun laws after the shooting death of NYPD Officer Dillon Stewart - by a gun stolen in Florida - NRA spokesman Andrew Arulanandam said it was "despicable" for Bloomberg to inject politics into the debate.

Others said Bloomberg's plan to take the fight to states where most of New York's illegal guns originate - with Florida and Georgia being prime culprits - was right on.

"He needs to go to Florida and say, 'You sell thousands of guns that end up on our streets every year, and one of them killed a police officer in New York. What are you going to do about that?'" said Jackie Kuhls, executive director of New Yorkers Against Gun Violence.

Mike's resolutions

Mayor Bloomberg's second inaugural address yesterday included promises to:

• Launch a national effort to crack down on illegal guns.

• Speed up the rebuilding of lower Manhattan and create a "sustainable residential and commercial community" - a clear reference to his call for housing at Ground Zero.

• "Lock in and extend" reforms granting mayoral control over city schools, which the state can revoke after 2008.

• Continue to drive down crime and improve public safety, which he called "the foundation of our city's prosperity."

• Be "fiscally responsible." City government "can and must live within its means," he said.

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