The Slatest

Joe Manchin, a conservative Democratic senator and a National Rife Association member, suggested this morning that it's time to discuss new regulations on assault weapons and that Washington needs to "move beyond rhetoric" when dealing with gun control.

"I don't know anyone in the sporting or hunting arena that goes out with an assault rifle," the West Virginia senator said on MSNBC's Morning Joe show. "I don’t know anyone that needs 30 rounds in a clip to go hunting. I mean, these are things that need to be talked about."

Manchin, who boasts an "A" rating from the NRA and is a lifetime member of the pro-gun rights group, stopped short of proposing any specific regulations but suggested that "everything needs to be on the table," adding that "anyone saying they don't want to talk, to sit down, to have that type of dialogue is wrong."