Latest news with #Lankford
Politico
11-07-2025
- Politics
- Politico
Trump ratchets up pressure on sanctions, clawbacks
IN TODAY'S EDITION:— Trump expects no checks in Russia sanctions bill— GOP leaders face funding fights galore— Lankford eyes pharma overhaul in megabill 2.0 FIRST IN INSIDE CONGRESS: MIKE LEE RANKLES THE MORMON CHURCH — Samuel Benson is out with a deep dive this morning on how Sen. Mike Lee's extremely active and politically provocative social media presence is fraying his relationship with some fellow members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Most recently, several senior church leaders were concerned over Lee's postings about last month's shootings that killed a senior Minnesota state lawmaker, Sam reports. RUSSIA BILL DRAMA — President Donald Trump's desire to have unchecked authority over the next wave of Russia sanctions could throw a wrench in the Senate's hopes of passing a bipartisan sanctions bill before August recess. The legislation from Sens. Lindsey Graham and Richard Blumenthal now has 85 backers in the Senate, including 42 Democrats. But Democrats are signaling they might rethink their support if the bill is changed to further shield the president from congressional intervention if he doesn't implement the sanctions. 'That, I would have some problem with,' Sen. Tim Kaine, a co-sponsor and member of the Foreign Relations Committee, said about a potential blanket waiver. 'The notion of some waiver in the sanctions bill is pretty normal, but I would just like to have it be for specified criteria, rather than just open-ended.' Trump is confident he's getting what he wants. 'It's a bill that the Senate is passing that very respectfully lets the president do whatever he wants, as you know,' he said in an NBC interview released Thursday evening. 'In other words, it's at my option if I want to use it.' Senators don't have much time to figure it out. Senate Majority Leader John Thune is hoping to take up the bill as soon as the week of July 21, two people granted anonymity to discuss the plans told our Jordain Carney, though in the event of a deal the House could move first. Right now the bill's lead co-sponsors are publicly addressing the issue in remarkably different ways, our Joe Gould and Connor O'Brien write in. Graham said Wednesday that Trump is 'in control of how you implement these sanctions,' and that, for the first 180 days, 'it's completely up to the president with no congressional oversight.' Blumenthal characterized the waiver authority in the bill as 'very limited and constrained.' Sen. Chris Coons, another Democratic co-sponsor, told Mia that Trump needs to 'decide that he's actually going to show strength in challenging [Russian President Vladimir] Putin.' 'If [Trump's] going to try and essentially take the force out of a strongly bipartisan sanctions bill, that means he hasn't yet figured out how badly Putin has been playing it,' Coons said. TGIF. Reach your Inside Congress crew at mmccarthy@ crazor@ and bguggenheim@ WHAT WE'RE WATCHINGWith help from Jordan Williams. The House and Senate are not in session. Next week: The House returns. It will take up cryptocurrency legislation and work through appropriations bills. The Senate will consider Trump's rescissions request and more Trump nominees, including Luke Pettit, an aide to Sen. Bill Hagerty, to be assistant secretary of the Treasury and Joseph Edlow to be the director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services at DHS. Pro subscribers receive this newsletter with a full congressional schedule and can browse our comprehensive calendar of markups, hearings and other notable events around Washington. Sign up for a demo. THE LEADERSHIP SUITE Funding fights galore for GOP leaders Senate GOP leaders are hitting big roadblocks in their efforts to codify billions in spending cuts sought by Trump and pass funding bills to avert a fall shutdown. Congress has one week left to approve the president's request to claw back $9.4 billion in foreign aid and public media funding, and Trump is ratcheting up pressure on GOP holdouts. He said on Truth Social Thursday evening that any Republican who opposes the plan 'will not have my support or Endorsement.' Thune told reporters Thursday that the Senate will likely start voting Tuesday on rescissions. After an initial vote, the tentative plan is for up to ten hours of debate (which Republicans and Democrats may use evenly), followed by a mini vote-a-rama on amendments. Sens. Susan Collins, Mike Rounds and Lisa Murkowski are among the Republican critics who have signaled they'll try to revamp the rescissions bill. 'I don't like the whole exercise of rescissions, particularly at a time when we're actually trying to advance appropriations,' Murkowski said Thursday. 'To me, we've got a disconnect here.' Murkowski on Thursday helped derail a Senate Appropriations markup of the Commerce-Justice-Science funding bill when she crossed party lines to support an amendment from Sen. Chris Van Hollen that would restrict the Trump administration from overriding a plan approved by Congress to move the FBI headquarters to suburban Maryland. It spurred several Republican senators to withdraw support for the bill, leaving appropriators at an impasse. Collins, the Appropriations chair, said afterward she was 'hopeful' the stalled bill could be revived but 'we've got other bills we can go on to.' Jeffries bashes Johnson at home House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries is bringing his campaign against Trump's 'big, beautiful' law to Speaker Mike Johnson's home state of Louisiana, which has the second-largest number of Medicaid recipients in the country. Jeffries called out Republicans in a town hall Thursday evening alongside Rep. Troy Carter and Steering and Policy co-chairs Reps. Robin Kelly, Debbie Wasserman Schultz and Nanette Barragán. The group will hold a press conference in Louisiana this morning at 11:15 a.m. ET. Jeffries said Louisiana is the first stop in a nationwide tour 'to make sure we continue to set the record straight as it relates to this One Big Ugly Bill.' POLICY RUNDOWN WHAT FINANCE MEMBERS WANT IN MEGABILL 2.0 — Senate Finance Republicans are already looking at tax and health policies that could be shuttled into a second budget reconciliation package this fall. Sen. James Lankford told Benjamin Thursday he'd like to overhaul the practices of pharmacy benefit managers, which negotiate drug prices between insurance companies and pharmacies, after bipartisan efforts to establish new PBM requirements faltered this spring. 'If we can't get that done in a bipartisan way, we need to move it,' Lankford said. He noted he'd like to reform 'tiering' for drug prices and the practice of 'spread pricing,' where PBMs charge insurers a higher price for medications than what they reimburse to pharmacies. Sen. Steve Daines, who also sits on Senate Finance, said he would endorse Sen. Ron Johnson's idea to go 'line by line' to find at least $2 trillion in spending cuts as part of the committee's work in a possible second party-line policy package. SPEAKING OF THOSE SPENDING CUTS — Ron Johnson met Thursday with Office of Management and Budget officials and believes he has the administration's blessing for establishing a budget review task force, Jordain writes in. The task force's aim will be to identify significant cuts and chart a path for returning spending back to pre-pandemic levels — a longtime priority Johnson was repeatedly pushing to include in the 'big, beautiful bill.' Those cuts, in Johnson's vision, could then be enacted as part of future reconciliation measures. Johnson said the effort will be a 'task force within the Budget Committee,' and that he and Sen. Rick Scott and Budget Chair Graham will represent the Senate, joking that Graham 'is our centrist.' They are expected to work with a group of three House Republicans as well as administration officials. 'This is gonna be very detailed behind the scenes, working very cooperatively with the department heads and secretaries,' the Wisconsin senator told reporters. DOUBLING DOWN ON NEW GAMBLING TAXES — Republicans blocked an effort by Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto Thursday to get a unanimous consent agreement on the Senate floor for restoring full tax deductions for gambling losses, which were limited to 90 percent in a little-noticed provision tucked into the GOP megabill. The provision is prompting some speculation that the gambling industry lobbied for its inclusion, since the new tax laws greatly limit the upside for professional gamblers. A spokesperson for DraftKings, the sports betting site, told Benjamin it supports legislation from Reps. Dina Titus and Ro Khanna that would undo the change to gambling deductions in the House. Best of POLITICO Pro and E&E: CAMPAIGN STOP ERNST RETIREMENT WATCH — Senate Republicans are increasingly worried that two-term Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst will retire rather than run for reelection next fall, giving Republicans another seat to defend, Jordain and Rachael Bade report. She'd be the fourth Senate Republican to retire ahead of the midterms. 'I'm doing everything I can to encourage her to run for reelection,' Thune said in a brief interview Thursday. 'Ultimately that's a decision she'd have to make.' Thune and Trump met Wednesday night and discussed the midterm map, according to Thune. Should Ernst bow out, Rep. Ashley Hinson – a formidable fundraiser and former TV news anchor – is expected to enter the race. On Democrats' side, the field is crowded, including bids from state Sen. Zach Wahls and state Rep. J.D. Scholten. TUNNEL TALK KEEP THE TRAINS RUNNING — Sen. Katie Britt made a plea Thursday as Senate Appropriations marked up the bill to fund the operations of Congress: Could there please be more money to improve the Senate subways, which are notorious for breaking down? Britt, stepping out of a stuck train car on her way to a vote Thursday, told our Katherine Tully-McManus she used her time trapped alongside Sen. John Hickenlooper to find common ground. 'John and I just worked together to figure out what we could work on together, so we used the time well,' she said. The chair and ranking member of the legislative branch appropriations subcommittee — Sens. Markwayne Mullin and Martin Heinrich — were also trapped together in a stalled car on Thursday. 'There has to be a way for us to work forward on this. And we will,' Mullin said about whether appropriators could find money for subway maintenance. He then turned to Heinrich: 'Not that I don't like spending time with you — just not stuck on a train.' THE BEST OF THE REST UK's Man in Washington Reveals Covert Push to Kill 'Revenge Tax', from Lauren Vella and Kate Ackley at Bloomberg Government Congress scrutinized this CEO's company 6 years ago. He's now a major political donor., from Hunter Wooddall and Eleanor Watson at CBS JOB BOARD Jaylene Kennedy is now a legislative assistant for Rep. Brian Mast. She previously was a legislative assistant for Rep. Cory Mills. Ross Dietrich is now deputy chief of staff for Mast; he previously was legislative director. Sen. Bill Hagerty's office is adding Robert Donachie as deputy chief of staff for comms, Tiffany Delgado as deputy chief of staff for operations, Michael Sullivan as senior adviser, Alec Richardson as state director and Kalleigh Ahern as press and digital assistant. HAPPY BIRTHDAY Sen. Ed Markey … Rep. Kristen McDonald Rivet … Scott Graves … Chris Maloney of Black Rock Group … Emily Benavides … Matt Lahr of Sen. Todd Young's office … Nora Connors … Michael Wong of the Bank Policy Institute … KayAnn Schoeneman … Paige Rusher of Seven Letter … Anne Sokolov … Ishmael Abuabara of Rep. Joaquin Castro's office … Joe Wall … Chris Vaeth … Ali Schmitz of PBS NewsHour … Stephen Hostelley … Jamie Stiehm TRIVIA THURSDAY'S ANSWER: Bill Geary correctly answered that Porter Stewart was the only Supreme Court justice to be confirmed by a 98-member Senate. TODAY'S QUESTION, from our Ben Jacobs: Next week Adelita Grijalva is hoping to succeed her late father Raul Grijalva in a congressional special election. When was the last time someone successfully succeeded a family member in an Arizona special election and who was it? The first person to correctly guess gets a mention in the next edition of Inside Congress. Send your answers to insidecongress@ CORRECTION: Yesterday's newsletter misstated the House plan to vote on a crypto regulation proposal. Our apologies.
Japan Today
17-06-2025
- Politics
- Japan Today
Killings at European schools fan concern U.S. problem is spreading
By John Revill Flowers and candles are seen in front of the fences as a banner reads ''Graz standing together'', following a deadly shooting at a secondary school, in Graz, Austria, on June 12. A spate of school killings in western Europe has raised pressure on authorities to tackle a problem long seen as a largely U.S. phenomenon, increasing momentum for tougher gun and security laws and more policing of social media. While mass shootings remain far more common in the United States, four of the worst school shootings in western Europe this century have occurred since 2023 and two - a massacre of 11 people in Austria and another in Sweden- were this year. Last week's killings in the Austrian city of Graz sparked calls for tighter gun laws by political leaders, mirroring the response of the Swedish government after the 11 deaths at the Campus Risbergska school in Orebro in February. "Mass shootings, of which school shootings are a part, were overwhelmingly a U.S. problem in the past, but the balance is shifting," said Adam Lankford, a criminologist at the University of Alabama. "The number in Europe and elsewhere is increasing." Part of the rise stems from copycat attacks in Europe often inspired by notorious U.S. rampages such as the 1999 Columbine High School massacre, according to shooters' own comments or their internet search histories, Lankford said. "It's like an export from America. These attackers see other people do it and it has a snowball effect." According to research by Lankford and Jason Silva, shootings carried out by people eager for notoriety were twice as numerous in the United States as in the rest of the world between 2005 and 2010. By 2017-2022, the rest of the world had caught up. Their data also shows that Europe accounts for a bigger share of mass shootings than it used to. It should be easier for European politicians to act against mass shootings than the United States, due to the central role of guns in American culture and identity, Lankford said. The European Union has left gun laws and regulation of social media up to member states. Recent killings have seen a drive by several countries to apply tougher rules. In Sweden, the government agreed to tighten the vetting process for people applying for gun licenses and to clamp down on some semi-automatic weapons following the Orebro killings. Incidents of violence and threatening behavior in junior high and high schools rose over 150% between 2003 and 2023, according to a report by Sweden's Work Environment Authority. In Finland, where a 12-year-old shot dead a fellow pupil and badly wounded two others in 2024, schools practice barricading doors and hiding from shooters. The government has also proposed stricter punishments for carrying guns in public. Following a deadly December knife attack at a Zagreb primary school, Croatia's government tightened access to schools and mandated they must have security guards. Germany has gradually imposed tighter controls on gun ownership since school massacres in 2002 and 2009, and last year introduced a ban on switchblades and on carrying knives at public events following a series of knife attacks. RESISTANCE Tightening gun ownership was the only way politicians could show they were taking the issue seriously, said Dirk Baier, a criminologist at the Zurich University of Applied Sciences. "There will certainly be resistance to this, from hunters, sport shooters, or other lobby groups," he said. "However, I think the arguments for tightening the laws will outweigh the arguments against." Gun laws have also been a hot political topic in the Czech Republic since a student shot dead 14 people at the Charles University in Prague in December 2023. The country made it obligatory for gun sellers to report suspicious purchases and requires doctors to check whether people diagnosed with psychological problems hold gun permits. Britain is holding a public inquiry into an attack in Southport where three young girls were stabbed to death last year. UK drama "Adolescence", a story about a schoolboy accused of murder, explores concerns about toxic online culture. Meanwhile in France, President Emmanuel Macron this month pressed for EU regulation to ban social media for children under 15 following a fatal school stabbing. What motivated the Austrian school gunman is still under investigation. Police said he was socially withdrawn and passionate about online shooting games. Most such shootings are carried out by young men, and criminologist Lankford said there was a global phenomenon of perpetrators seeking notoriety that eluded them in real life, driven in part by social media. "Even if the shooters expect to die, some are excited about leaving behind a legacy." Austria has relatively liberal gun laws, and President Alexander Van der Bellen said after the attack the legislation deserved closer scrutiny. Broad support in Austria for tightening gun ownership laws looked probable, although a general ban on private weapons seems unlikely, said political scientist Peter Filzmaier. © Thomson Reuters 2025.
Gulf Today
15-06-2025
- Politics
- Gulf Today
Killings at European schools concern authorities
A spate of school killings in Western Europe has raised pressure on authorities to tackle a problem long seen as a largely US phenomenon, increasing momentum for tougher gun and security laws and more policing of social media. While mass shootings remain far more common in the United States, four of the worst school shootings in Western Europe this century have occurred since 2023 and two — a massacre of 11 people in Austria and another in Sweden — were this year. This week's killings in the Austrian city of Graz sparked calls for tighter gun laws by political leaders, mirroring the response of the Swedish government after the 11 deaths at the Campus Risbergska school in Orebro in February, reported Reuters. 'Mass shootings, of which school shootings are a part, were overwhelmingly a US problem in the past, but the balance is shifting,' said Adam Lankford, a criminologist at the University of Alabama. 'The number in Europe and elsewhere is increasing.' Part of the rise stems from copycat attacks in Europe often inspired by notorious US rampages such as the 1999 Columbine High School massacre, according to shooters' own comments or their internet search histories, Lankford said. 'It's like an export from America. These attackers see other people do it and it has a snowball effect.' According to research by Lankford and Jason Silva, shootings carried out by people eager for notoriety were twice as numerous in the United States as in the rest of the world between 2005 and 2010. By 2017-2022, the rest of the world had caught up. Their data also shows that Europe accounts for a bigger share of mass shootings than it used to. It should be easier for European politicians to act against mass shootings than the United States, due to the central role of guns in American culture and identity, Lankford said. The European Union has left gun laws and regulation of social media up to member states. Recent killings have seen a drive by several countries to apply tougher rules. In Sweden, the government agreed to tighten the vetting process for people applying for gun licences and to clamp down on some semi-automatic weapons following the Orebro killings. Incidents of violence and threatening behaviour in junior high and high schools rose over 150% between 2003 and 2023, according to a report by Sweden's Work Environment Authority. In Finland, where a 12-year-old shot dead a fellow pupil and badly wounded two others in 2024, schools practice barricading doors and hiding from shooters. The government has also proposed stricter punishments for carrying guns in public, informed Reuters. Following a deadly December knife attack at a Zagreb primary school, Croatia's government tightened access to schools and mandated they must have security guards. Germany has gradually imposed tighter controls on gun ownership since school massacres in 2002 and 2009, and last year introduced a ban on switchblades and on carrying knives at public events following a series of knife attacks. Tightening gun ownership was the only way politicians could show they were taking the issue seriously, said Dirk Baier, a criminologist at the Zurich University of Applied Sciences. 'There will certainly be resistance to this, from hunters, sport shooters, or other lobby groups,' he said. 'However, I think the arguments for tightening the laws will outweigh the arguments against.' Gun laws have also been a hot political topic in the Czech Republic since a student shot dead 14 people at the Charles University in Prague in December 2023, noticed Reuters. The country made it obligatory for gun sellers to report suspicious purchases and requires doctors to check whether people diagnosed with psychological problems hold gun permits. Britain is holding a public inquiry into an attack in Southport where three young girls were stabbed to death last year. UK drama 'Adolescence', a story about a schoolboy accused of murder, explores concerns about toxic online culture.
New Straits Times
15-06-2025
- Politics
- New Straits Times
Killings at European schools fan concern US problem is spreading
A spate of school killings in Western Europe has raised pressure on authorities to tackle a problem long seen as a largely US phenomenon, increasing momentum for tougher gun and security laws and more policing of social media. While mass shootings remain far more common in the United States, four of the worst school shootings in Western Europe this century have occurred since 2023 and two - a massacre of 11 people in Austria and another in Sweden - were this year. Last week's killings in the Austrian city of Graz sparked calls for tighter gun laws by political leaders, mirroring the response of the Swedish government after the 11 deaths at the Campus Risbergska school in Orebro in February. "Mass shootings, of which school shootings are a part, were overwhelmingly a US problem in the past, but the balance is shifting," said Adam Lankford, a criminologist at the University of Alabama. "The number in Europe and elsewhere is increasing." Part of the rise stems from copycat attacks in Europe often inspired by notorious US rampages such as the 1999 Columbine High School massacre, according to shooters' own comments or their internet search histories, Lankford said. "It's like an export from America. These attackers see other people do it and it has a snowball effect." According to research by Lankford and Jason Silva, shootings carried out by people eager for notoriety were twice as numerous in the United States as in the rest of the world between 2005 and 2010. By 2017-2022, the rest of the world had caught up. Their data also shows that Europe accounts for a bigger share of mass shootings than it used to. It should be easier for European politicians to act against mass shootings than the United States, due to the central role of guns in American culture and identity, Lankford said. The European Union has left gun laws and regulation of social media up to member states. Recent killings have seen a drive by several countries to apply tougher rules. In Sweden, the government agreed to tighten the vetting process for people applying for gun licences and to clamp down on some semi-automatic weapons following the Orebro killings. Incidents of violence and threatening behaviour in junior high and high schools rose over 150% between 2003 and 2023, according to a report by Sweden's Work Environment Authority. In Finland, where a 12-year-old shot dead a fellow pupil and badly wounded two others in 2024, schools practice barricading doors and hiding from shooters. The government has also proposed stricter punishments for carrying guns in public. Following a deadly December knife attack at a Zagreb primary school, Croatia's government tightened access to schools and mandated they must have security guards. Germany has gradually imposed tighter controls on gun ownership since school massacres in 2002 and 2009, and last year introduced a ban on switchblades and on carrying knives at public events following a series of knife attacks. Tightening gun ownership was the only way politicians could show they were taking the issue seriously, said Dirk Baier, a criminologist at the Zurich University of Applied Sciences. "There will certainly be resistance to this, from hunters, sport shooters, or other lobby groups," he said. "However, I think the arguments for tightening the laws will outweigh the arguments against." Gun laws have also been a hot political topic in the Czech Republic since a student shot dead 14 people at the Charles University in Prague in December 2023. The country made it obligatory for gun sellers to report suspicious purchases and requires doctors to check whether people diagnosed with psychological problems hold gun permits. Britain is holding a public inquiry into an attack in Southport where three young girls were stabbed to death last year. UK drama "Adolescence", a story about a schoolboy accused of murder, explores concerns about toxic online culture. In France, President Emmanuel Macron this month pressed for EU regulation to ban social media for children under 15 following a fatal school stabbing. What motivated the Austrian school gunman is still under investigation. Most such shootings are carried out by young men, and criminologist Lankford said there was a global phenomenon of perpetrators seeking notoriety that eluded them in real life, driven in part by social media. "Even if the shooters expect to die, some are excited about leaving behind a legacy."
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Analysis-Killings at European schools fan concern U.S. problem is spreading
By John Revill ZURICH (Reuters) -A spate of school killings in Western Europe has raised pressure on authorities to tackle a problem long seen as a largely U.S. phenomenon, increasing momentum for tougher gun and security laws and more policing of social media. While mass shootings remain far more common in the United States, four of the worst school shootings in Western Europe this century have occurred since 2023 and two - a massacre of 11 people in Austria and another in Sweden- were this year. This week's killings in the Austrian city of Graz sparked calls for tighter gun laws by political leaders, mirroring the response of the Swedish government after the 11 deaths at the Campus Risbergska school in Orebro in February. "Mass shootings, of which school shootings are a part, were overwhelmingly a U.S. problem in the past, but the balance is shifting," said Adam Lankford, a criminologist at the University of Alabama. "The number in Europe and elsewhere is increasing." Part of the rise stems from copycat attacks in Europe often inspired by notorious U.S. rampages such as the 1999 Columbine High School massacre, according to shooters' own comments or their internet search histories, Lankford said. "It's like an export from America. These attackers see other people do it and it has a snowball effect." According to research by Lankford and Jason Silva, shootings carried out by people eager for notoriety were twice as numerous in the United States as in the rest of the world between 2005 and 2010. By 2017-2022, the rest of the world had caught up. Their data also shows that Europe accounts for a bigger share of mass shootings than it used to. It should be easier for European politicians to act against mass shootings than the United States, due to the central role of guns in American culture and identity, Lankford said. The European Union has left gun laws and regulation of social media up to member states. Recent killings have seen a drive by several countries to apply tougher rules. In Sweden, the government agreed to tighten the vetting process for people applying for gun licences and to clamp down on some semi-automatic weapons following the Orebro killings. Incidents of violence and threatening behaviour in junior high and high schools rose over 150% between 2003 and 2023, according to a report by Sweden's Work Environment Authority. In Finland, where a 12-year-old shot dead a fellow pupil and badly wounded two others in 2024, schools practice barricading doors and hiding from shooters. The government has also proposed stricter punishments for carrying guns in public. Following a deadly December knife attack at a Zagreb primary school, Croatia's government tightened access to schools and mandated they must have security guards. Germany has gradually imposed tighter controls on gun ownership since school massacres in 2002 and 2009, and last year introduced a ban on switchblades and on carrying knives at public events following a series of knife attacks. RESISTANCE Tightening gun ownership was the only way politicians could show they were taking the issue seriously, said Dirk Baier, a criminologist at the Zurich University of Applied Sciences. "There will certainly be resistance to this, from hunters, sport shooters, or other lobby groups," he said. "However, I think the arguments for tightening the laws will outweigh the arguments against." Gun laws have also been a hot political topic in the Czech Republic since a student shot dead 14 people at the Charles University in Prague in December 2023. The country made it obligatory for gun sellers to report suspicious purchases and requires doctors to check whether people diagnosed with psychological problems hold gun permits. Britain is holding a public inquiry into an attack in Southport where three young girls were stabbed to death last year. UK drama "Adolescence", a story about a schoolboy accused of murder, explores concerns about toxic online culture. Meanwhile in France, President Emmanuel Macron this month pressed for EU regulation to ban social media for children under 15 following a fatal school stabbing. What motivated the Austrian school gunman is still under investigation. Police said he was socially withdrawn and passionate about online shooting games. Most such shootings are carried out by young men, and criminologist Lankford said there was a global phenomenon of perpetrators seeking notoriety that eluded them in real life, driven in part by social media. "Even if the shooters expect to die, some are excited about leaving behind a legacy." Austria has relatively liberal gun laws, and President Alexander Van der Bellen said after the attack the legislation deserved closer scrutiny. Broad support in Austria for tightening gun ownership laws looked probable, although a general ban on private weapons seems unlikely, said political scientist Peter Filzmaier.
