Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Police Commissioner Ray Kelly discussing the recent hate crimes. (Photo: nyc.gov)

Mayor Michael Bloomberg spoke out Tuesday following a wave of alleged anti-gay hate crimes that have stirred outrage in neighborhoods across the city.

“New York City has zero tolerance for intolerance," he told reporters at a press conference with Police Commissioner Ray Kelly at police headquarters.

Mr. Kelly said that, over the past 24 hours, police have received reports of two additional bias attacks: At approximately 10:45 p.m. Monday, he said an assailant allegedly "just snapped, became enraged" and began shouting anti-gay expletives and beating a man he's been drinking with near the Bowery Mission. Approximately seven hours later, a couple walking north near Prince Street was also attacked, he said.

The incidents are just the latest in a string of recent attacks--including the shooting death last Friday of a young named Mark Carson in the West Village.

“It was a cold-blooded hate crime that cut short a life full of promise, and brought back awful memories for people who were once afraid to walk down the street with the person that they loved," the mayor said of the killing. “Thankfully, we have come a long way from those days--but the murder of Mark Carson is a tragic reminder of how far we still have to go."

He said the city is "a place that celebrates diversity--a place where people from around the world come to live free of prejudice and persecution. Hate crimes like these are an offense against all we stand for as a city--and we will do everything possible to stop them," he said, urging parents and teachers to "spread tolerance" and asking members of the LGBT community to report any crimes--as the city beefs up patrols.

Mr. Kelly noted that, while hate crimes are down almost 30 percent this year overall, anti-gay crimes have spiked significantly, with 29 attacks so far this year, versus 14 last year.

Mr. Bloomberg vowed to do everything necessary to try to stave off more attacks and warned would-be assailants to be on alert:

“You’re going to wind up in jail for a very long time. Period. We're gonna find you," he said, noting: "Jail’s not a nice place."

He added: “It’s not a good day for New York."

(Photo: Wikimedia)

Earlier today, National Rifle Association C.E.O. Wayne LaPierre and other leaders from the gun group held a much-anticipated press conference to react to the ongoing controversy surrounding the shootings at a Sandy Hook elementary school one week ago. For those hoping for a grand speech, Mr. LaPierre certainly didn't disappoint. In the address, Mr. LaPierre pushed back hard against those calling for additional gun control measures while accusing the media of being "silent enablers, if not complicit co-conspirators" in the violence. He also seemed to hold a host of other entities and events responsible, such as Hurricane Sandy.

"Violent crime is increasing again for the first time in 19 years," Mr. LaPierre said. "Add another hurricane, terrorist attack or some other natural or man-made disaster, and you've got a recipe for a national nightmare of violence and victimization. And here's another dirty little truth that the media try their best to conceal. There exists in this country, sadly, a callous, corrupt and corrupting shadow industry that sells and stows violence against its own people. Through vicious, violent video games with names like 'Bulletstorm,' 'Grand Theft Auto,' 'Mortal Kombat,' and 'Splatterhouse.'...A thousand music videos, and you all know this, portray life as a joke and portray murder, portray murder, as a way of life. And then they all have the nerve to call it 'entertainment.' But is that what it really is? Isn't fantasizing about killing people as a way to get your kicks really the filthiest form of pornography?"

Mr. LaPierre then accused the media of financially profiting from these digital forms of violence, which result not only in unfair coverage of the gun industry, but causes the bloodshed itself.

"In a race to the bottom, media conglomerates compete with one another to shock, violate and offend every standard of civilized society by bringing in an even more toxic mix of reckless behavior and criminal cruelty right into our homes, every minute, every day, every hour of every single year," he continued. "A child growing up in America today witnesses 16,000 murders and 2,000 acts of violence by the time he or she reaches the ripe old age of 18. And throughout it all, too many in the national media, their corporate owners and their stockholders, act as silent enablers, if not complicit co-conspirators. Rather than face their own moral failings, the media demonize gun-owners."

Mr. LaPierre and the other NRA leaders at the press conference did not take questions at the press conference. Protesters twice interrupted the proceedings with chants of "The NRA has blood on its hands...ban assault weapons now!" and "NRA Stop Killing our children!" Though reporters in attendance tried to ask Mr. LaPierre to respond to the protesters, he continued with his remarks.

The N.R.A. head didn't only have criticisms, however, as he also proposed solutions, including eliminating "Gun-Free School Zones" and putting an armed security officer in every single school in America.

"With all the foreign aid the United States does, with all of the money in the federal budget, can't we afford to put a police officer in every single school? Even if they did that, politicians have no business and no authority denying us the right, the ability and the moral imperative to protect ourselves and our loved ones from harmed," Mr. LaPierre argued. "We can immediately make America's schools safer, relying on the brave men and women in America's police forces. The budgets--you all know this, everyone in the country knows this--of our local police departments are strained, and the resources are severely limited. But their dedication and courage is second to none and they can be deployed right now. I call on Congress today, to act immediately, to appropriate whatever is necessary to put armed police officers in every single school in this nation! And to do it now! "

In order to facilitate getting armed guards into American schools, Mr. LaPierre announced the launch of an NRA "National School Shield" program spearheaded by former congressman Asa Hutchinson that will help advise officials on how to properly secure their schools. He said this program will not be a strain on budgets because it will involve volunteer guards.

"This will be a program that does not depend upon massive funding from local authorities or the federal government. Instead, it will make use of local volunteers serving in their own communities," Mr. LaPierre said. "The National Rifle Association is the obvious choice to sponsor this program. "

With mounting calls for gun control measures, it remains to be seen whether politicians will be willing to take the NRA up on their offer to put armed volunteers in schools.

Additional reporting from Hunter Walker

(Photo: Getty)

Since last Friday's massacre at a Newtown, Connecticut elementary school, President Barack Obama has used vague phrases like "meaningful action" to express his administration's response to the slaying, while avoiding delving too far into specific plans. At a media briefing earlier today, however, White House press secretary Jay Carney listed some of the gun control measures Mr. Obama would actually support.

"He is actively supportive of, for example, Senator Feinstein’s stated intent to revive a piece of legislation that would reinstate the assault weapons ban," Mr. Carney said. “He supports and would support legislation that addresses the problem of the so-called 'gun show loophole,' and there are other elements of gun legislation that he could support. People have talked about [restricting] high capacity ammunition clips, for example. That is certainly something he would be interested in looking at. My point is that it goes beyond that."

Of course, left unsaid is how much political capital Mr. Obama is willing to spend to back this legislation. Advocates, including New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, have been pushing Mr. Obama to actively push these measures through Congress rather than simply await a bill to arrive on his desk. But Mr. Carney did say the wavering of some pro-gun legislators, like West Virginia's Democratic Senator Joe Manchin, gave Mr. Obama confidence.

"He is heartened, I should mention, by what we have all heard from some members of Congress who have been longtime opponents of gun control measures, commonsense gun control measures like the assault weapons ban," Mr. Carney added. "In fact, not long before I came out here he was on the phone with Senator Manchin discussing just this issue."

President Obama reacting to today's news. (Photo: Getty)

Mayor Michael Bloomberg is not satisfied with President Barack Obama's reaction to the recent shooting at a Connecticut elementary school. Specifically, a tearful Mr. Obama called for "meaningful action" to prevent future tragedies, a vague vow that Mr. Bloomberg, who has emerged as one of the chief gun control advocates nationwide, found wholly unacceptable.

"President Obama rightly sent his heartfelt condolences to the families in Newtown. But the country needs him to send a bill to Congress to fix this problem. Calling for ‘meaningful action’ is not enough," Mr. Bloomberg said in a statement. "We need immediate action. We have heard all the rhetoric before. What we have not seen is leadership – not from the White House and not from Congress. That must end today. This is a national tragedy and it demands a national response. My deepest sympathies are with the families of all those affected, and my determination to stop this madness is stronger than ever.”

This is not the first time Mr. Bloomberg, who heads Mayors Against Illegal Gun Violence, has called Mr. Obama out in the immediate aftermath of a violent tragedy.

View the full statement below:

Statement of Mayor’s Against Illegal Guns Co-Chair New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg:

“With all the carnage from gun violence in our country, it’s still almost impossible to believe that a mass shooting in a kindergarten class could happen. It has come to that. Not even kindergarteners learning their A,B,Cs are safe. We heard after Columbine that it was too soon to talk about gun laws. We heard it after Virginia Tech. After Tucson and Aurora and Oak Creek. And now we are hearing it again. For every day we wait, 34 more people are murdered with guns. Today, many of them were five-year olds. President Obama rightly sent his heartfelt condolences to the families in Newtown. But the country needs him to send a bill to Congress to fix this problem. Calling for ‘meaningful action’ is not enough. We need immediate action. We have heard all the rhetoric before. What we have not seen is leadership – not from the White House and not from Congress. That must end today. This is a national tragedy and it demands a national response. My deepest sympathies are with the families of all those affected, and my determination to stop this madness is stronger than ever.”

Statement of Mayors Against Illegal Guns Co-Chair Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino:

“As a parent and grandparent, I am overcome with both grief and outrage by the tragedy in Newtown, Connecticut. This unspeakable act of violence will forever imprint this day in our hearts and minds. My heart goes out to the families impacted by this senseless tragedy and the many others we have recently witnessed across the United States. As a Mayor who has witnessed too many lives forever altered by gun violence, it is my responsibility to fight for action. Today’s tragedy reminds us that now is the time for action. Innocent children will now never attend a prom, never play in a big game, never step foot on a college campus. Now is the time for a national policy on guns that takes the loopholes out of the laws, the automatic weapons out of our neighborhoods and the tragedies like today out of our future.”

(Photo: Getty)

In one of the worst school shootings in American history, over two dozen were left dead at a Newtown, Connecticut elementary school earlier today. And, although many facts have yet to emerge, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo called for the public to learn from "yet another senseless and horrific act of violence involving guns," and for the government to act in response.

"We as a society must unify and once and for all crack down on the guns that have cost the lives of far too many innocent Americans," Mr. Cuomo said in a statement. "Let this terrible tragedy finally be the wake-up call for aggressive action and I pledge my full support in that effort."

Mr. Cuomo, of course, is not the only prominent New Yorker to call for new gun control measures, and elected officials' press releases have been pouring in, both expressing their sympathy and pushing for new policies to slow the flow of illegal guns. Manhattan Congressman Jerry Nadler announced he was "challenging President Obama, the Congress, and the American public to act on our outrage and, finally, do something about this,” for example. Similarly, Speaker Shelly Silver tacked more broadly, declaring, "If ever there is a time to finally have a serious discussion about our country's culture of violence that time is now."

View Mr. Cuomo's full reaction below:

"I was shocked and saddened to hear of the tragic shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School this morning in Newtown, Connecticut. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and friends of the innocent victims – many of whom were young children – whose lives were claimed by this senseless and horrific act of violence. During times of such unthinkable tragedy, all New Yorkers stand together with the people of our neighboring state to grieve the loss of life and help bear the pain and anguish that will be felt by so many in the weeks, months, and years to come.

"While we don’t have all the facts and our focus must be on the victims, this is yet another senseless and horrific act of violence involving guns. We as a society must unify and once and for all crack down on the guns that have cost the lives of far too many innocent Americans. Let this terrible tragedy finally be the wake-up call for aggressive action and I pledge my full support in that effort."

(Photo: Getty)

After a gunman killed a dozen people and injured scores more at a movie theater in suburban Colorado last night, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg declared that he's had enough. And although both President Barack Obama and presidential hopeful Mitt Romney issued statements offering condolences for the victims' families, the mayor sharply criticized them for not offering specific policy proposals to deal with the fundamental issue at hand.

"You know, soothing words are nice, but maybe it’s time that the two people who want to be President of the United States stand up and tell us what they are going to do about it, because this is obviously a problem across the country," Mr. Bloomberg said on his weekly appearance on John Gambling's radio show this morning. "And everybody always says, ‘Isn’t it tragic,’ and you know, we look for was the guy, as you said, maybe trying to recreate Batman. I mean, there are so many murders with guns every day, it’s just got to stop. And instead of the two people – President Obama and Governor Romney – talking in broad things about they want to make the world a better place, okay, tell us how."

To further emphasize his point, Mr. Bloomberg's office, which has made combating gun violence one of its top priorities, sent out a transcript of his interview, available below:

John Gambling: Mayor Bloomberg, good morning.

Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg: Good morning, John.

Gambling: Nice to see you as always. That deal in Aurora, just another horrific unexplainable mass murder.

Mayor Bloomberg: You know, soothing words are nice, but maybe it’s time that the two people who want to be President of the United States stand up and tell us what they are going to do about it, because this is obviously a problem across the country. And everybody always says, ‘Isn’t it tragic,’ and you know, we look for was the guy, as you said, maybe trying to recreate Batman. I mean, there are so many murders with guns every day, it’s just got to stop. And instead of the two people – President Obama and Governor Romney – talking in broad things about they want to make the world a better place, okay, tell us how. And this is a real problem. No matter where you stand on the Second Amendment, no matter where you stand on guns, we have a right to hear from both of them concretely, not just in generalities – specifically what are they going to do about guns? I can tell you what we do here in New York. The State Legislature passed the toughest gun laws – some states may say no. That’s okay, what do you want to do? And maybe every Governor should stand up. But in the end, it is really the leadership at a national level, which is whoever is going to be President of the United States starting next January 1st – what are they going to do about guns?

Gambling: The reality is you know that will not happen.

Mayor Bloomberg: Well, it’ll happen, John, if it was one of your kids yesterday in Aurora, maybe you’d stand up and say I’m not going to take this anymore. Maybe you get your friends and everything. And it’s not a question of what you think is right here. Here’s the issue: You want to be President? Okay, I said the other day, forget about stuff- you want to fix the economy? Tell us how you’re going to fix the economy, and tell us in a practical sense because the President has to deal with Congress, the President has to do things consistent with what the courts will allow. But just going and talking in generalities unfortunately doesn’t give the public the information they need to make an informed decision.

Gambling: Don’t you think that’s true again because the public doesn’t really know what it wants to hear? Doesn’t really care enough about that? And that the candidate has to play to the base because it’s the only way he or she is going to get elected, and therefor if he doesn’t get elected he can’t do anything-

Mayor Bloomberg: Well, it’s like saying, you know, I can be dishonest because I won’t get elected and then I can’t be honest. I mean, come on. You know, but number one, there’s something more important than getting elected, and that’s standing up and saying what you think is right. I mean, I listen to this all the time, everything – oh, it’s getting reelected. Getting reelected or elected isn’t everything. How do you- you’ve got to look your family in the eye, you’ve got to look yourself in the mirror and say this is what I really believe and this is what I’ll do if I get elected. And if it sells it sells, and if it doesn’t sell it doesn’t sell. And you know, you say people don’t know. Yeah, I think that’s fair. People don’t have a solution, or everybody has a different solution. But that’s why we elect governors and presidents and legislators to lead from the front, to come up with solutions, to tell us what those solutions they think are. Some will work, some won’t, some they’ll get through the Legislature, some they won’t be able to. But you still- if we just say, ‘Well, there’s nothing you can do about it.’ Think about where we’re going. This country is in very big trouble, and we need the two presidential candidates to tell us how they’re going to take us out of this. We used to be here in New York in the top ten in education in every standard. We’re lucky to be in the top 50. We used to have all the new jobs created here in this country. Everybody talks about jobs. Tell us specifically how you’re going to do it. New York City, we have our plans – some good, some bad, some people like them, some don’t – but we’re talking about the future of the country. Tax policy – you know, they talk about, ‘I’m going to reduce everybody’s taxes,’ or, ‘I’m going to reduce taxes for the group that I think will vote for me the most.’ That’s just not the way to do it. But guns – get back to Aurora – this is killing people every day, and it’s growing and it’s not just an inner-city, east coast, west coast, big city phenomenon. Aurora is not a big city.

Gambling: No.

Mayor Bloomberg: Suburb of Denver.

Gambling: Yeah.

Mayor Bloomberg: You know, the murder-

Gambling: 25 miles from Columbine, which I think is-

Mayor Bloomberg: The murder rate in the rural areas is just as bad if not worse than the murder rate in urban areas.

Gambling: Have you ever talked with anybody about the psychology of that? I know the gun issue, but the psychology of that. Have we become less sensitive to our neighbor?

Mayor Bloomberg: I don’t know about that. You know, I’m not a physiatrist or a psychologist. I can tell you I don’t think there’s any other developed country in the world that has remotely the problem we have. There’s no other place that allows- we have more guns than people in this country. Every place else, if there are murders they’re generally not done with guns – not generally, a lot more are not done with guns. And everybody’s got problems with crime, and you know, that’s the real world. God didn’t make everybody perfect. But this is just- you know, and we can talk about it on the talk shows, we can wring our hands and say it’s terrible. You know, ‘I need more guns to protect myself.’ And that strategy doesn’t work. That’s like saying incarcerate more people and you’ll reduce crime rate. In New York City, we’ve reduced the incarceration- the number of people incarcerated by over a third and crime keeps coming down. Because when you send somebody to jail – particularly a kid – all they do is learn how to be a worse criminal. So that’s just not a good solution. You may be able to say, ‘I’ll put her in jail and throw away the key.’ That sounds good, but it doesn’t solve the problem.

Gambling: You are talking about leadership and we are desperate for it. Desperate for it, in on some many levels.

Mayor Bloomberg: Look, almost- most of America believes that their candidate – whether it is President Obama or Governor Romney – will provide leadership. I think there’s no question about it. They each have 40 odd percent, whatever it is – 45 percent – of the electorate. The whole election is going to be about that ten percent in the middle.

Gambling: If 10 percent.

Mayor: Whatever it is.

Gambling: Whatever the number.

Mayor Bloomberg: And so most people say, ‘Well if you elect my guy, there will be leadership.’ But maybe the middle is going to demand that you tell them how. And they’re the ones that are going to decide this.