WASHINGTON: Bristling with anger, President Barack Obama branded Wednesday’s defeat of his gun reform drive in the US Senate as “shameful,” and accused lawmakers of caving in to the powerful firearms lobby. A deeply emotional Obama lashed out after a bid to expand background checks for gun buyers — the last meaningful piece of his trimmed effort to retool gun laws after the Newtown school massacre — failed to pass. Ringed by dazed and grief-stricken relatives of some of the 20 children gunned down in Connecticut in December, Obama accused the firearms lobby of lying to thwart change but vowed he would not give up the fight. “Families that know unspeakable grief summoned the courage to petition their elected leaders not just to honor the memory of their children but to protect the lives of all of our children,” he said in the White House Rose Garden. “A minority in the United States Senate decided it wasn’t worth it.” As he absorbed the first significant political defeat of his second term, the president said “the gun lobby and its allies willfully lied about the bill. “All in all, this was a pretty shameful day for Washington.” The background checks bill did attract a majority vote — 54-46 — but 60 senators were needed for passage.
Venezuela’s Maduro eyes inauguration
Caracas: Nicolas Maduro steamrolled toward inauguration as Venezuela’s president yesterday despite days of flaring tensions over opposition demands for a recount in elections to replace Hugo Chavez. The late Chavez’s political heir, Maduro appeared to have regained control of the situation after post-election protests turned violent in parts of the country, leaving eight people dead and more than 60 injured. “We have defeated the coup d’etat,” Maduro has declared, while accusing his rival Henrique Capriles of “sowing violence”. Preparations were under way to swear Maduro in with pomp and circumstance today to complete Chavez’s six-year term, cut short by his death from cancer March 5 after 14 years in power.
No winner in second round of Italy vote
ROME: Italy’s parliament failed to elect a new president during a second round of voting yesterday, with no candidate winning the required two-thirds of the vote. The majority of the ballots were spoilt by party members from across the political sphere playing for time in the hope of agreeing on a winning candidate. A third vote is set to take place today morning, and the ballot will continue with two votes a day until a president is elected.
Gunmen kill six in eastern Kenya town
NAIROBI: Gunmen in the volatile eastern Kenya town of Garissa yesterday night shot and killed six people, police said. “Six people have been killed after people armed with guns stormed a hotel,” a police officer said and added that a security operation was underway to track the attackers. He said nine other people had been injured in the attack. Guns are common in the impoverished northeastern region, which hosts more than 500,000 Somali refugees.
Agencies
