WASHINGTON — President Obama has turned over his weekly address to the mother of a 6-year-old boy killed in the Newtown, Connecticut, shooting.
Francine Wheeler, who has emerged as a prominent advocate for gun control since her son was killed at Sandy Hook Elementary on Dec. 14, will deliver the weekly address. It is usually posted to the White House website on Saturday mornings and typically consists of a brief address by Obama.
While it's rare for someone other than the president to deliver the weekly address, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney noted Friday that Vice President Biden has delivered the address in Obama's place before.
Carney said Obama selected Wheeler to help make the push for gun control. The Senate is set to take up legislation on the issue next week.
"As we continue to debate guns, one thing has been very clear," Carney said. "Nobody has a more important or powerful perspective than the families who have lost loved ones."