Boston Marathon Bombing and the Politics of Gun Control

pub bombing how mannheim and that shocking lockdown all-american city plots this week set back for gun control tonight on washington week parker undersea several day more than a hundred windsor and millions rattle by scary terrorism momentarily lost all hope plus the other ho place uncertainty dominated the it's fair to say that expiry we've been in a brief direct confrontation with you this is not an issue sometimes takes time hai could change again to identify it perpetrators now there are suspects that little clarity we try to put the puzzle pieces together also another emotional moments in washington will return home now disappointed as victims watched the senate rejected a plan to impose background checks on gun buyers mr president reorder the senate to addressing the issue of crime is to focus our resources and everything we can tumhari prosecuted for family criminals covering tomorrow hopefully comes out tonight n_p_r_ peter baker of the new york times parent company of the washington post and caps felony pop a_b_c_ award-winning reporting and analysis history as it happens my from our nation's capital this is washington week with women hyphal once again live from washington moderator with pride it and then we could not have been invented this week if we tried and iconic sporting event comes under attack after one suspect is killed another one runs a manhunt consumes boston shutting down the city and its suburbs the suspects have roots in the disputed russian province of chechnya and in the middle of it all the president of the united states becomes console or entry once again this subject to the does to terrorize us to shake us from those values that the ball describe the values that make us who we are as americans well should be pretty clear by now that they picked the wrong side of the bill boston marathon bombings brought us back to that scary place we've been through after oklahoma city after atlanta and after nine eleven the sense that nothing is under control so where do things stand tonight still not quite under control it seems clinton-like i mention that for the people of boston today must have been a day's something like what nine eleven was for new yorkers city shut down the sense of paralysis fear volatility police everywhere armored vehicles and tonight because we go on the air that situation is still the same police all over boston we don't know what's going on gunshots heard in the night explosions heard it's is really something that we haven't seen in a long time and this man hunt hazard ever been a time in american history where we have seen as a city shot down looking for one nineteen-year-old tell us peter about these two suspects one now deceased the other the brother who is the one who everyone is been looking for right there two brothers uh... there's no cards and i have is the one who survived the shootout originally had been sought all day in boston is nineteen years old being here since that two thousand two just made a nice day citizen last year on september eleventh as it turns out wrestling all-star wrestler in high school studying universit masters dartmouth not doing well his brother who passed away he died in a at a shootout last night with the police was talent cuts and i have twenty six uh... he believed the word on one of the to do this discussion about whether he controlled or manipulated his younger brother we've heard that scenario before uh... he was uh... you said uh... on bonds of internet ah... sites that he uh... very religious and uh... talked about how you'd have a single american friend in the end that part of what was interesting about this story aside from the secure shock at that was the the breast of the investigation i heard nine thousand police officers born this was really an extraordinary police each human i mean if you think about the thousands of people who with their uh... if they were around the boston marathon on monday and they basically all they could could do was to look for somebody that had a black backpack and and uh... you know acting as a cissp suspicious manner and they were able to identify to command and each bombing site that wasn't enough for them but they did identify these two suspicious characters the realtor turn came when they found out that those two individuals were walking together at one point so you sought to minute walking together and then coincidentally each of them ended up and one of the bombing sites that was the key in that's how they figured it out but it took extraordinary work one of the other interesting things that came out of this i mean it seem like there is one more wrote one and revelation after the other and gary would know something about this 'cause you've actually been there but they have trust me and heritage dance to and al-mal week-long we're saying is this the best of terrorism was this foreign terrorism and we still don't really know right i mean we've got to be very careful here yes they're catching by ethnicity but they have never really lived in uh... test has as grown men they they'd actually grew up in central asia please call cure to stand here in very early two thousand so what their connection to the long-standing conflict in chechnya is it still kind of a mystery that one of the brothers did talk on the web a one point about help justin ought to be independent from russia this is a centuries old dispute between moscow and and this muslim republican southern tier uh... but that doesn't say really mean that they're it all connected to the conflict there no evidence at this point we've seen publicly of any ties to any uh... well-known group so respect you and some extent and uh... it could be something completely different yet but i was struck during the reports today as best their friends could tell they had been they were both thoroughly american especially the younger brother and friends were recalling it because sports achievements he was in the drama club but he went to the prom these were not sort of isolated people who would sort of held themselves outside of society it is having had a real beef with america not thrilled with us in the way a lot of uh... but a lot of uh... some of them were islamic uh... to hottest type thought it was a simple question debbie does with russia exactly the separatist thought uh... a conflict of morphy got hijacked to some extent by islamic jihad ists uh... but there's not been an anti-american type of are moving up until now as you know we did learn that the older brother in recent years had become had taken to come to take uh... islam much more seriously he actually married a christian movement but then she converted in according to our reporting today she was put under a lot of pressure by him to become more and more and about to the point that she actually at this point has been wearing his job so some kind of change took place at least in the mind of this older brother he became i think less and less integrated into american life for whatever reason incorrect i'm not so my report was indicating on the telus up talk with intelligence ah... members in the senate and in the house pin one thing that the house homeland security committee uh... chairman says he was deserve a nun is a trip that the older brother to a russia last year for six months he spent in russia and he's asking the question was he radicalized their how easy is that to answer though but that uh... the decision that he took a trip to turkey trip to russia for six months but his parents about a year ago move back to russia region called palestine next just yet so he has every reason to go and visit his parents put new york times reporters in moscow talk with his father day c he was never out of my sight we went into the relatives in chechnya but he never had any opportunity to go traynor and involve mother also said he was being framed in the united states and being framed on goes by the way to restrain from this to say nothing we seem to accept the idea of this might happen and that these are which is one of them put well that's interesting that he did say he he's a bright shame on the chechen on the chechen identity the chechen nation if you really killed the idea that these guys were motivated by ideology or politics you're right peter he just said they're losers and they didn't fit in and the truth is and when you look at the key the be violent crimes that we've had the nashua teams in recent years there sometimes are indications of mala just and so forth so i just wanted to learn to read and seen them since two thousand five sock and feels that they had moments like this that a lot of people come out of the woodwork the only thing that's different is usually the come out the woodwork and say he was a loner right and he was kept to himself and we're hearing wildly divergent descriptions since that night rainy dozens have become organization that you've seen in the chechen terrorist of cells in the past detecting tears of a very effective in russia in the past i was there in moscow next season uh... fearful of people her thirty people died i was there in best linus a small town in southern russia when he sees a school three have people died including uh... most of children in fact sedating credibly effective at mast slaughter very well-organized operations before this doesn't look like that kind of uh... operation well let's get back to what this one looks like this up there and you resemblance in any way to other sp terrorist attacks that we have seen either for elder care either well we do we know that there has been eight liberar any of sort of domestic extremist attacks and symbols of government the federal building the you know that uh... gilded government buildings in new york and so forth uh... that's from sort of the domestic extremist point-of-view and then adi jeff heiney groups had tended to focus more on sort of symbols of the american nation there is a lot of interest in attacking monuments the boston are square over times square the boston marathon sort of doesnt fit either one of these categories i mean it's a an iconic aventis in a colleague institution for the people of boston but internationally it doesn't really have that kind of image so it's just a hard one to figure out on the other hand it is also a big spectator bennett we haven't seen that sort of thing where you see a lot with a lot of cameras already pointed out that we knew it was going to be a good look what's happened here it's excuse it dot in no way to minimize this pit three people died and one-tenth of one percent of number of people who died on nine eleven pm we as a country are gripped by it we are terrorizes literally achieved at the end it to other that goal terrorism and its was remarkable me is actually we've gone ten twelve years now since my one without a series of these type of small-scale attacks he would have justice mucho impact i think on this country uh... is the largest kill ones you know that was a very intimate attack they did there was this point story of uh... of the young men who lost both legs in the bombing and he says that in the moment of the bomb went off the bomber was right there in front of and looked into for the moment before he put his bag down the bombers write their conduct in the eyes of he knows who set off the bomb and it's it's just a very sort of personal thing we should say that our friend pete williams n_b_c_ news who sits around the state what this on nights has been reporting uh... tonight that there has been that the the second book club suspect the younger brother they think maybe perhaps our corner they the maybe he's in a small that they don't neighborhood in watertown and we're still waiting confirmation about whether it's dead or alive but that raises the question to me about the breath of this investigation how much most federal how much if it was local how much it was st who took the lead uh... well this was one of these classic cases of the joint terrorism task force and this is an institution has really developed in the aftermath of nine eleven where you bring together all kinds of law enforcement agencies all kinds of jurisdictions local company federal-state they work together as a task force and this this seems to have been we've worked very well in this case well not case with a move on then if we get anything new well-versed on their will share with you even beyond boston the president's week was a complicated one especially after the senate decisively rejected the mildest form of gun control to emerge after the newtown shootings background checks for gun buyers only a week ago are republican senator pat toomey and a democrat joe mentioned seem to have hit on the perfect bipartisan compromise but no the president called the senate defeat shameful of republicans and several democrats to called it necessary what happened in the ngo what happened in the end is probably what was going to happen in the beginning that gun control is one of the most a complicated things to pass the senate yes there is incredible emotion i was up there for the last couple weeks is these newtown families we're going door to door to door talking to senators and it was the most emotional lobbying campaign and i've ever seen but what was not present uh... how is visible was this aggressive lobbying from the n_r_a_ and from gun owners of america who simply would not allow republicans most republicans to who join this effort so i think what happen this week was me first of all final bill that was being discuss the expanding the the background that checks was just a very small watered-down measure compared to what the president had proposed on you know a ban on assault weapons and other things like that but even that couldn't a past four democrats and the putting a concert but the big problem was they couldn't get republicans to hump sort of sign on the net even uh... moderate republicans john mccain eye-popping when he was giving his floor speech he voted for this boy it reminded me of the john mccain of two thousand he was out there saying this is the right thing to do debbie difference was shot she's my friend and they were still not enough republicans to do it you ask them privately they said an easy vote to take and they said the houses and in a passes anyway so why should i vote for it wasn't just republicans saying this was some key democrats lewis four democrats voted no but even if all four had voted before they still would not have had the sixty votes but it was uh... a couple diverting some of the house probably not doing it was uh... at least one explainer why some senate republicans that thought it was easier to vote against it wanted to say about the president's possible domestic legislative agenda for the rest mr mc three-and-a-half years left this is an issue that the background checks not the other parts of the package and ninety percent uh... support if you can get this through what can he get through in these next three actors it's a great question and we'll see coming up on immigration immigration strip is next up the bill was introduced this week as well as a finance is going on was almost an afterthought but the people think immigration is a better chance of passing because it's a politically an expedient and more popular four republicans but it it is not to be underestimated the size of defeat this is for this white house he put his capital on the line the vice president was up there for the vote he was making phone calls the president flew a new town families and things is a significant defeat for him and uh... i think it means that uh... uh... most of the road the rest of his second term it's that he does not have a big a legislative agenda remaining many seems really angry but by the defeat melagenina curious whether that's like tactical at all it was it just plain emotional visceral anger having both but i think it's certainly seemed distraught i cannot remember a time the list of public policy senator politics aside what he was that increased any rose garden with the families around and that was real those anger young leaders that biden with his hand at this hearing i mean looking like he was an incredible fiction a front-page new york times and he and i think he was mad about this but the question is will see if the power of this organization t_-bill organizing for america it's this oppose campaign group are they really going to a person these democrats who voted against it and primary them of course they're not so i think it was always gonna be toppled that was what was striking to dick as always for the campaign the president had said you know i finally began to realize you cannot change washington from the inside you have to change washington from the outside and we saw him on the stand control issue dupe all of the things he said he was gonna do he went around the country to build support that the last weekend before he had one of tea victims of the shootings parents and give the saturday radio address and it suggested that you can't even change washington from the outside so essentially you wonder you know what tools what leverage does he really have left me part of it was will be a white house and that his the supporters can get beat in the message to enter the n_r_a_ and gun owners of america i'm affectively branded this as a gun registry which is something that a lot of republicans can support in fact that was it your did they do that under risk of sub rosa because we were so busy i mean it into the lobbying campaign the very emotional lobbying campaign that this was happening why i think this sense that these were you know two entirely different kinds of operations one was all about message and the other was all about sort of the mechanics i mean needed d gun rights people they they had their machinery going and it really did look like they were losing the message warp it turned out the message were didn't matter and they bring to this is something that would essentially a federal gun registry which wasn't true in fact there was a portion of the bill a piece of legislation in the bill the would make it a felony if there is actually done registrant heaven forbid having electronic done registry but that is very controversial in some places but type i would say this is one that the a white house and senator harry reid majority leader was a bit outmaneuvered by the other side on this is a possible that this face to face victim lobbying uh... gabby giffords or did very emotional opted pay piece that extent in new york times and every month declaring this is only run one of the big back-to-back and change what we just saw that we get that they have to change the formula will see and you will see if different two senators are elected but there were a few other profiles in courage i would say senator mary landrieu she's up for reelection she's from louisiana she voted for it i ran into our in the hallway after the vote person senator how tough a vote was actually was the very tough of it is the right thing to do so there were uh... uh... insists is of that but senator reid has effectively pulled the bill is that it's time to take them apos here in a breast care in tennessee with the next steps are but i think it's done for gun control legislation pleased with this current makeup of the senate he too much to ask of people who are taking to oppose it a couple time integration right-hand gay marriage and gun control read one session and congratulations on the new job cell how does government how do we need here is how do we the function but everything is so uncertain the white house released this picture of the president meeting with security advisers on the boston bombings in the situation room today at a time like this tell with the rice in scares and shocking explosions in texas and menace will shut down some legislators setbacks like gun control its heart about that picture is reassuring or concerning karen which well i tell you what struck me as i saw that picture was uh... my gosh that they are just like the rest of us they're just sitting there waiting to get an update on the latest horrible fainted just sort of wash over us this week and it's so striking when you think about where they were just a week ago it looked like this bipartisan compromise could be clearing the way for at least modest gun control legislation immigration was on the verge of a compromise it today it already seemed as though the immigration issue was about to be dragged into what was happening and boston as we heard a senior republican on the judiciary committee i'd check grassley say that we don't know the immigration status of the people who terrorized the communities in massachusetts when we find out it will help shed light on the weaknesses of our systems in this is this is unit has the potential to completely mri framed the immigration debate one going forward it seems it was a position the president and the precarious position politically which is to say it's all on certain and if you are on the first half of your second term what she was a little the certainty because you never going to be and a stronger position lifeboat people feel that things are so out of control they are not going to be is likely to make the kind of that you need to make on aim sort of major policy change as for instance immigration overhauled would be and i think that they did it did problem also is that uh... the very things he talked about the rice and the other answers all dipali unrelated many with polly we would be necessary pay much attention to had not been for boston the they come together in may and the uh... uh... rather than rallying people behind the president has as businesses have in the past have dinner questions and to do his leadership and where the country is in other interestingly enough some of the proponents including some of the republican proponents of overhauling the immigration laws were saying to me today you know that if this does become an argument about national security but they do you think that they've got some good arguments to make that really you know that the bill as it was introduced by this sub-crater gang of eight it requires that the border security be beefed up before anything else can happen and they'd do you believe do know that it is possible to sell immigration reform as a national security blue lobby has poured might remind people that these two uh... individuals who were the subject of this manhunt uh... boston were here legally and they were not here are the only going to me i packed cayman refugee status with that kind of rhetoric from senator grassley though does that have the potential to serve spread like wildfire or or have a gang of the the republicans in the anecdotes officially insulated themselves they started as a gang of a stronger than the gang into was odd uh... i thought that being member of a tax that were coming at senator marco will be no from the right were pretty extraordinary including uh... in coulter sent out a-twenty this morning that when we found out that one of the suspects was dead saying well there's one person who won't be getting amnesty under will be of bill itself it's really interesting to factually inaccurate i know that this is this around but this is a man who was a human to the tea party he was essentially yet helped create the tea party and all of a sudden on this issue he is facing an onslaught in the right to decide he has decided it seems to stand up for use seems to have decided to to actually back in a great it's read yes and rest simply i mean they are fighting every single one of these charges says as one of the reviews aide said to me today for it as far as they're concerned noble august two small date sir but so is the president strategy now that bill more this set by partisanship dinner stuff let's just stick to whatever i can get that whatever crafts or is there another way i did not i cannot imagine that at the white house right now they know what their strategy is going but because they'd think dummy outside game they've done the inside game uh... nothing's working right like that picture of them sitting around waiting to see what happens next exactly okay we are also waiting to see what happens next that story in boston tonight we'll keep you up to date on it but it's going to have to be online thank you everyone stories down to keep moving all weekend you can join us at eight thirty p_m_ eastern for the washington week webcast extra it'll be streamed live and among other things will be talking about that rice is caring about mark sanford gas that happened this week to keep up with the other developments on-line and use our dot p_b_s_ dot org and on-air all next week on our website given the events of the week you can find my commentary on what happens when journalists try to get first before getting it right that's at p_b_s_ dot org slash washington week and we'll see you again next week on washington week have a good night