The Senate Judiciary has signaled it will hold a hearing
this month on violence, stemming from the recent spate of mass shootings.
"What Should America Do About Gun Violence?" is scheduled
for Jan. 30 at 10 a.m., according to a copy of the hearing notice. That hearing
comes in the wake of the Newtown shootings and the president's call for
congressional action on gun control.
According to a committee staffer, the hearing is not expected to be confined to gun control issues and could include mental health and media violence issues. "I think everything is going to come up." Citing the title, he said: "I think that is kind of a catch-all for the issues involved rather than one specific part of the equation."
The committee is in the process of inviting witnesses, but a list probably won't be announced until Friday at the earliest.
The hearing notice came the same day that Vice President Joe
Biden, who led the White House initiative to address the problem, is scheduled
to talk about those initiatives, which include gun control measures, mental
health initiatives and media violence studies, in a Google-hosted online forum.
