Roll Call: “President Barack Obama will dine with a dozen Republican senators on April 10 at a dinner organized by Sen. Johnny Isakson, the Georgia lawmaker’s office and a senior administration official confirmed.”
“New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s (I) pro-gun control group on Thursday unveiled a new ad featuring parents of children killed in the Newtown, Conn. mass shooting calling for tougher gun laws,” The Hill writes. “The ad from ‘Mayors Against Illegal Guns’ will run on Connecticut stations, and urges state legislators to pass universal background checks on all gun sales, as well as bans on the sale of military-style assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, according to reports.”
Here’s the ad. A full-screen image pops up with the list of priorities: comprehensive background checks, limit high capacity magazines, assault weapons ban. A parent says, “Don’t let the memory of Newtown fade without doing something real.”
“President Obama stumbled toward his endorsement of gay marriage. But gay rights groups say he was still a trendsetter,” The Hill writes, adding, “Gay rights groups credit Obama’s decision as opening the floodgates to other Democratic lawmakers, creating a sense this week that history is being made in days, not weeks.”
“As a bipartisan group of senators chips away at the remaining obstacles to an immigration deal, President Barack Obama says he is optimistic that – if lawmakers release a draft bill early next month – he will be able to sign comprehensive immigration reform into law before autumn,” NBC’s Carrie Dann writes. Said Obama in an interview with Telemundo: “If we have a bill introduced at the beginning of next month -- as these senators indicate it will be -- then I'm confident that we can get it done certainly before the end of the summer.”
“President Obama will be traveling to Mexico in early May to meet with newly elected President Enrique Peña Nieto, the White House announced Wednesday,” The Hill notes, adding, “Obama will also stop in Costa Rica during the May 2-4 trip for meetings with Central American leaders.”