Bloomberg: President’s Top Priority Should Be Guns [VIDEO]

New York City's mayor says that in the wake of the Connecticut shooting rampage, President Barack Obama's priority should be to lead the country on gun control.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg said in an interview that aired Sunday on NBC's "Meet the Press" that the president's job "is to perform and to protect the American public."

Bloomberg has been an outspoken gun control advocate for years. He notes that New York state has some of the toughest gun laws in the country, and New York City the lowest murder rate of any big American city.

The mayor says it's time for Obama to stand up and tell the country what needs to happen, not go to Congress and ask what lawmakers want to do.

Members of Congress are talking about the issue. Sen. Dick Durbin says the gun control debate in Washington has been dominated by "gun lobbies." Appearing on Fox News Sunday, the Illinois Democrat says "ordinary Americans" need to join the debate and "calmly reflect" on how far to go with gun laws.

Durbin and Sen. Joe Lieberman are calling for a national commission to examine mass shootings in the United States. The senator from Connecticut the panel should scrutinize the nation's gun laws, the mental health system and the role that violent video games and movies might play in shootings.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein tells NBC's "Meet the Press" that she's reviving her push for a ban on military-style assault weapons. The Connecticut medical examiner who examined the victims of yesterday's elementary school says they were shot multiple times with a rifle. The lightweight, high capacity Bushmaster .223-caliber is popular with law enforcement and the military.

Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

(Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved)