Bloomberg Fighting to Counter Gun Lobby

Michael Bloomberg has stepped up his calls for tighter gun laws in the wake of last month's Colorado massacre, but to his frustration, not many people seem to be listening—especially not President Obama and Mitt Romney. The argument that gun carnage can be stopped with existing laws—as both candidates insist—is "preposterous," the New York City mayor tells the Huffington Post, but the "irrational" gun lobby has made it too daunting for politicians to even discuss gun control. The gun lobby has "created this aura that they are so powerful, if you don't go with them, they'll take you out and destroy your ability to feed your family," he says.

Bloomberg is throwing his support behind politicians, including Scott Brown, who buck the NRA, but he says a broader movement—"a liberal equivalent to the NRA"—is needed to change the debate about the Second Amendment and convince lawmakers that gun control won't be a career-killer. "Now, why does Fox News work and MSNBC doesn't? I don't know," he says. "I’ve always thought to myself, if you could hire Roger Ailes, pay him $100 billion, and say, 'Hey, go create left-wing television.' Could he do it? And I think, yes, he would." Bloomberg is worth some $22 billion, according to the latest Forbes rich list. (More Michael Bloomberg stories.)