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Cameron: I don't want a country called Europe

Britain's Cameron slams efforts to forge a country called Europe

Britain's Prime Minister David Cameron walks past a map of Europe on a screen as he walks away after making a speech on holding a referendum on staying in the European Union in London, Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2013. Cameron said Wednesday he will offer British citizens a vote on whether to leave the European Union if his party wins the next election, a move which could trigger alarm among fellow member states. He acknowledged that public disillusionment with the EU is "at an all-time high," using a long-awaited speech in central London to say that the terms of Britain's membership in the bloc should be revised and the country's citizens should have a say. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham)

DAVOS, Switzerland (AP) -- British Prime Minister David Cameronwants nothing to do with a United States of Europe, an idea that's gaining currency as the countries that use the euro struggle to fix their debt crisis.

A day after he shook up Europe's political landscape by offering citizens the prospect of a vote on whether to stay in the 27-countryEuropean Union, Cameron insisted Thursday he wants Britain to remain an integral part of the bloc but that more unification would not be the answer.

"To try and shoehorn countries into a centralized political unionwould be a great mistake and Britain would not be a part of it," he said in a speech at the World Economic Forum in the Swiss resort of Davos.

Over the past few months, many in the EU, particularly among the 17 countries that use the euro, are on a drive for closer unification, and that's raised particular concerns in Britain, which has often viewed the bloc through a business prism.

"If you mean that Europe has to be a political union, a country called Europe, then I disagree," said Cameron, who insisted he is arguing for a more flexible EU — not to walk out on it. On Wednesday, Cameron put an end to months of speculation by revealing he intends to hold a referendum onBritain's membership of the EU if he wins the next general election, expected in 2015.

But many politicians in Europe think closer political ties are exactly what is needed to maintain continental unity in the face of a debt crisis that's laid bare fundamental flaws in the euro. TheEuropean Union, which last year won the Nobel Peace Prize, effectively started amid the rubble of World War II — the motivation to avoid future wars.

Some even think Europe's end-game has to be to resemble the United States of America. Countries would be so tied together in their economic and social fabric to make war inconceivable.

A number of European leaders have accused Cameron of putting the bloc at risk to deal with domestic political problems. His Conservative Party has a hardcore element that is highly skeptical of the EU, while an anti-EU party, the UK Independence Party, is gaining ground in the polls most notably at the expense of Cameron's Conservatives.

Italian Premier Mario Monti said Britain should set aside ideology and look at its membership in the EU with "pragmatism, which should be a British attitude of mind."

He argued that Britons, for all their hostility to EU regulations and bureaucracy, benefit so much from the single market that they would be scared to leave — a ready access to markets and over half a billion people would be a gamble too far.

Most of British business appears to want to stay in the EU but out of the integrationist drive — the question is whether that can be achieved.

"The vast majority of businesses across the UK want to stay in the single market, but on the basis of a revised relationship ..... that promotes trade and competitiveness," said John Langworth of the British Chambers of Commerce.

He was among 55 British business leaders who issued a public letter to the Times of London on Thursday complaining about demands from Brussels and calling for a "a more competitive, flexible and prosperous European Union that would bring more jobs and growth for all member states."

Growth is certainly something that Europe is craving. The eurozone as a whole is in recession and figures Friday are expected to show the British Economy, the EU's third-largest, half way back to its third recession in four years — a recession is commonly defined as two successive quarters of negative economic growth.

The leaders of Italy, Ireland, the Netherlands and Denmark — also in Davos for the gathering of political and business elites — stressed the importance of Britain's place in the EU.

But Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt acknowledged Cameron's budget concerns.

"Every morning we need to get up in the morning and ask, are we spending public money in the right way," she said. "If we are doing it at the member state level we should be doing it at the European level as well."

Britain's relations with Europe have been strained since the end of World War II. It did not join the European Steel and Coal Community, the forebear of what would later become the European Union, in 1951.

Britain later realized there were benefits accruing from joining up with some of its wartime friends and foes, and joined the evolving European bloc. It has stood against many efforts to forge closer ties, notably the creation of the euro, but has been at the forefront of the drive to create a single market.

Feinstein Proposes Assault Weapons Ban

With an AR-15 and nine other guns on her left, Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., introduced a bill today that would ban assault weapons and high capacity ammunition clips.

The bill comes nearly 20 years after the first assault weapons ban was signed into law.

"I remain horrified by the massacre committed at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., and I'm also incensed that our weak gun laws allow these mass killings to be carried out again and again and again," said Feinstein, who was joined by senators, representatives, mayors, police officials and victims of gun violence. "Military-style assault weapons have but one purpose, and in my view that's a military purpose, to hold at the hip, possibly, to spray fire to be able to kill large numbers."

"Assault weapons were designed for and should be used on our battlefields, not on our streets," Sen.Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., said. "We know that there is no inalienable right to own and operate 100-round clips on AR-15 assault rifles."

Feinstein's proposed plan, which she will formally introduce on the Senate floor this afternoon, will ban the sale, transfer, manufacturing and importation of 158 semi-automatic weapons with at least one military feature. It would also ban fixed magazines that are capable of holding more than 10 rounds.

The newly bill differs from the 1994 assault weapons ban in that it does not have a sunset provision.Feinstein said the bill will protect over 2,200 makes of hunting and sporting rifles and shotguns, and the bill will subject existing or grandfathered weapons to background checks if they are sold or transferred.

"We have tried to learn from the bill. We have tried to recognize legal hunting rights. We have tried to recognize legal defense rights. We have tried to recognize the right of a citizen to legally possess a weapon. No weapon is taken from anyone. The purpose is to dry up the supply of these weapons over time. Therefore, there is no sunset on this bill," Feinstein said.

Feinstein acknowledged the difficulty lawmakers face in passing this bill through Congress.

"Getting this bill signed into law will be an uphill battle, and I recognize that, but it's a battle worth having," Feinstein said. "We must balance the desire of a few to own military-style assault weaponswith the growing threat to lives across America."

The National Rifle Association said Feinstein's plan infringes on second amendment rights and neglects to address other issues spurring gun violence.

"Senator Feinstein has been trying to ban guns from law-abiding citizens for decades. It's disappointing but not surprising that she is once again focused on curtailing the Constitution instead of prosecuting criminals or fixing our broken mental health system. The American people know gun bans do not work and we are confident Congress will reject Senator Feinstein's wrong-headed approach," Andrew Arulanandam, spokesman for the NRA, told ABC News.

Feinstein's office told ABC News that the senator worked with U.S. Capitol Police and Washington Metro Police to ensure the display of weapons at the press conference complied with the rules.

An ABC News-Washington Post poll released last week found that 65 percent of those polled supported banning high capacity ammunition magazines while 58 percent favored banning the sale of so-called assault weapons.

Last week, President Obama introduced his gun policy agenda, which called for the banning of some assault-style weapons and high capacity magazines holding over ten rounds. The president's plan included 23 executive actions on gun violence that would not require congressional approval, which included a directive for national agencies to strengthen the criminal background check system.

A new ABC News-Washington Post poll out today showed 53 percent find the president's gun control plan to be favorable while 41 percent view it unfavorably.

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