Except for truck, gun control push going nowhere GUN CONTROL

Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y. arrives at the Supreme Court in Washington, Thursday, April 29, 2010, for a campaign finance news conference. Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y. arrives at the Supreme Court in Washington, Thursday, April 29, 2010, for a campaign finance news conference. Photo: Harry Hamburg, AP Photo: Harry Hamburg, AP Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Except for truck, gun control push going nowhere 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

(04-11) 04:00 PDT Washington --

The red billboard truck traveling around the United States has a big number emblazoned on its side - 2,995 as of last week, the running tab of people slain by guns in the United States since the Jan 8. shooting in Tucson that killed six people and wounded 13 others, including Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz.

The truck started in New York's Times Square and will traverse the country keeping an updated tally on gun deaths as part of an effort by the group 550 Mayors Against Illegal Guns to galvanize support for stricter gun laws.

Despite the highly visible campaign, there is no groundswell for additional gun regulations in the wake of the Tucson shootings.

A loose consensus has emerged that recognizes that "these killings are the shooter's responsibility - not the gun's responsibility," said Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas.

The political debate has shifted from ambitious attempts to ban specific kinds of weapons such as Saturday night specials or assault-style weapons to more modest efforts to limit the lethality of legal weapons and tighten screening to prevent purchases by convicted criminals or individuals with evidence of mental illness or instability.

Even those proposals face little hope of passage in the politically split Congress.

A measure to restrict ammunition clips to 10 rounds rather than the 33-round magazine used in Tucson has 105 Democratic co-sponsors but languishes in a subcommittee in the Republican-controlled House.

In the closely divided Democratic-led Senate, no action has been taken on a proposal by Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., to stiffen penalties for states that fail to provide updated mental health reports to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System used to screen prospective gun buyers. Schumer's proposal also would close the "gun show loophole," which permits some firearms sales without background checks.

"Political divisions over guns and the power of the National Rife Association have created an environment where gun control has become essentially untouchable," said John Bruce, a University of Mississippi scholar who wrote "The Changing Politics of Gun Control." "Our society has collectively decided that we're willing to accept tens of thousands of firearms fatalities each year."