We’re not even a full month into 2013, but already some potential 2016ers are making big headlines. In fact, their names have been splashed across newspapers so much that it almost seems as if they’re already competing for the limelight and a nomination. What’s the word from the top five? Check them out below…
Gov. Andrew Cuomo, D-N.Y.
During his State of the State address on January 9th, New York state Governor Andrew Cuomo sounded more like a presidential hopeful addressing the nation than a Governor addressing his state. Since then, Cuomo has gotten his name into the headlines on the gun control issue.
On Monday, Cuomo announced legislation called the New York Secure Ammunition and Firearms Enforcement Act of 2013, aka the NY SAFE ACT.
While gun control has taken up most of Governor Cuomo’s air time, the New York State legislator has also proposed legislation for green energy. According to the Pew Center, Cuomo proposed creating a $1 billion “NY Green Bank,” a means of funding to support eco-friendly research.
Gov. Martin O’Malley, D-Md.
Maryland’s Democratic Governor has been on the 2016 shortlist for a while now. Like Cuomo, he too has been making the push for stricter gun laws.
On Tuesday, during a summit for experts on gun policy at John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, O’Malley said he is going to propose a ban on military-style assault weapons and require stricter licensing requirements.
During his speech O’Malley said of his gun control reform, “it will ban military assault weapons that have no place on the streets of Baltimore or on any other neighborhood in our state and it will also limit the size of magazines in order to make it harder for criminals to gun down in succession police officers or school children.”
The Maryland lawmaker is also making waves in the form of death penalty reform. The Washington Post reports that O’Malley plans to announce at a rally on Tuesday that he’ll put the “full weight” of his office behind repealing the death penalty.
Gov. Bob McDonnell, R-Va.
School safety reform is setting the groundwork for McDonnell’s possible 2016 bid.
On Monday, the Republican Governor asked a new state task force to look at school safety to see if any improvements could be made. While McDonnell’s office has said gun control won’t be a part of the panel’s deliberations, the task force was created in response to the December 14th shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School. Gov. Chris Christie, R-N.J. Christie has been on the presidential short-list since before the campaign for 2012 was over. The Garden State governor has kept his name in the headlines for quite some time. Perhaps the most recent was his face on the cover of Time Magazine and an interview with NBC’s Today both of which focused on Christie’s cry for help for Sandy victims after lawmakers voted to postpone a $60 billion relief package. Christie has also dipped his hand into gun control reform, telling the NBC he’s “willing to have that conversation.” Secy. Of State Hillary Clinton, Democrat After a long and hard run on the campaign trail back in ’08, President Obama nominated Hillary Clinton to be Secretary of State. Since then, Clinton has become a bit of an ideological figure in politics—bringing the “cool” factor while proving she could have what it takes to lead the country. While being the administration’s key figure on foreign affairs Clinton’s name frequents headlines very often. Lately, Clinton has been a key name in the Benghazi attacks. The Secretary of State is planning to testify on January 23rd. Pending on how the testimony goes could play a fairly key factor in any potential plan for her run in 2016.
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