Today’s edition of quick hits:
* Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) unveiled a newly revamped Assault Weapons Ban this morning. It will exempt 2,200 firearm models, and existing weapons will only be affected (subject to background checks) if they’re being sold.
* On a related note, there probably won’t be much bipartisanship on gun policy, but there will be a little: “The first bipartisan legislation to place tighter restrictions on guns will be introduced in the Senate next week, part of a joint effort by Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) and Mark Kirk (R-Ill.).”
* Speaking of gun policy, Sen. Joe Manchin’s (D-W.Va.) support for universal background checks is a pretty big — and unexpected — deal. Greg Sargent has the scoop.
* More on this on tonight’s show: “Saying that more needs to be done to reform Wall Street, President Barack Obama named tough former federal prosecutor Mary Jo White to head the Securities and Exchange Commission, bringing a proven white-collar crime watchdog into an agency that has been criticized for being soft on the financial industry.”
* No good will come of this: “A blunt and explicit threat from North Korea on Thursday that its missile and nuclear programs would ‘target’ the United States poses a stark challenge to the Obama administration even as it hoped it could focus its major diplomatic effort on restraining Iran’s less-advanced nuclear program.”
* The president is on board with women in combat: Obama “‘fully supports’ the decision by the departing Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta, said Jay Carney, the White House press secretary, at a briefing Thursday morning. But Mr. Carney seemed to suggest that it was not a decision that the White House reviewed extensively or that Mr. Obama had to formally approve.” * Norm Ornstein gets to the heart of the problem on weak Senate reforms: “They are going to make it easier to move things, but they are not extracting a price for bad behavior right now.” * And did you ever wonder what happened to the chair Clint Eastwood argued with during the Republican National Convention? Oddly enough, it ended up in Reince Priebus’ office (thanks to my colleague Kent Jones for the tip). Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.
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