Former Rep. Beto O’Rourke defended his call for mandatory buybacks of certain semi-automatic weapons in an exclusive interview on "Meet the Press" Sunday, pushing back on criticism from Republicans — as well as some from within his own party — who think the Democratic presidential hopeful’s proposal has gone too far.

O'Rourke said the opposition to his proposal shows “how screwed up the priorities in Washington D.C. are” while evoking recent, high-profile mass shootings like the one in his hometown of El Paso, Texas, NBC News reports.

“I refuse to even acknowledge the politics or the polling, or the fear or the NRA. That has purchased the complicity and silence of members of Congress,” he said. “And this weak response to a real tragedy in America, 40,000 gun deaths a year, we’ve got to do something about it and I'm proposing we do something about it.”

O’Rourke's plan would ban weapons classified as “assault weapons” as well as high-capacity magazines and silencers. It would also mandate that people who own weapons that become illegal under the new policy sell their guns back to the government.

Delaware Democratic Sen. Chris Coons, who has endorsed former Vice President Joe Biden, told CNN on Friday that he thinks the plan plays into the talking point from Republicans that “Democrats are coming for your guns” and said that he thinks the proposal isn’t “wise.”

Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., sought on Sunday to clarify a comment she made about the September 11th terror attacks after one mourner referenced the remark during a memorial event this week, NBC News reports.

"9/11 was an attack on all Americans," Omar told CBS's "Face the Nation." "It was an attack on all of us. And I certainly could not understand the weight of the pain that the victims of the families of 9/11 must feel. But I think it is really important for us to make sure that we are not forgetting, right, the aftermath of what happened after 9/11."

"Many Americans found themselves now having their civil rights stripped from them," she continued. "And so what I was speaking to was the fact that as a Muslim, not only was I suffering as an American who was attacked on that day, but the next day I woke up as my fellow Americans were now treating me a suspect."

At a Manhattan memorial commemorating the anniversary of the attacks on Wednesday, Nicholas Haros Jr. of New Jersey took the stage wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with "some people did something," highlighting a past remark from Omar.

"Today I am here to respond to you, exactly who did what to whom," Haros, who lost his mother, Francis Haros, in the attack, said. "We know who and what was done, there's no uncertainty about that."

Police are looking for the person who abandoned a dog in a cage in Enfield.

The male German shepherd was found Saturday in a cage down an embankment, according to police. They did not say where in town the dog was found.

He appeared to be healthy and was wearing a blue collar with a black clasp.

The pup was taken to a veterinarian and was being treated for dehydration later on Saturday.

Anyone who recognizes the dog or knows the owner is asked to contact Officer Ryan with the Enfield police at jryan@enfield.org or by calling 860-763-6400 ext. 1414.

Police said the dog is currently not up for adoption, but that could change.

A woman stabbed as many as 30 times in a brutal domestic attack in Cheshire has died, according to police.

Police responded to a home on Mountain Road Wednesday night and found Monica Dominguez in a pool of blood on the floor.

She was rushed to the hospital.

On Sunday, police said Dominguez had died.

Dominguez's husband, 31-year-old Emmanuel Dominguez-VillaGomez, was taken into custody and charged with first-degree assault, risk of injury, reckless endangerment and unlawful restraint.

He appeared in court on Friday.

In light of Dominguez's death, police said they are working with the Office of the State's Attorney on any additional charges.

“The family is in a lot of pain,” said friend, Diana Montes. “We need to become her voice. This has to stop. We want full justice for Monica she didn’t deserve this.”

Court papers say the victim's two children were inside the home at the time of the assault - an 11-year-old boy who called 911 and a girl who is almost 2 years old.

According to the court documents, when police arrived they saw several knives and there was a lot of blood. The documents go on to say that the woman had several cuts to her throat, but she was able to tell paramedics, “he tried to kill me and, “he say, I cheated on him,” referring to VillaGomez.

“I’d like to say that she was an overall beautiful, strong willed and amazing person,” said friend, Heather Beichner. “And as hard as this is, I am so blessed to have had her in my life.”

Lucas McClain started smoking cigarettes in high school but switched to vaping after he heard e-cigarettes were a safer alternative. His vape of choice became the Juul, the king of electronic cigarettes — which comes with a king-size nicotine hit, NBC News reports.

Now 21, McClain wants to quit so badly that he’s turning back to the problem he fled in the first place: good old-fashioned cigarettes.

One Juul pod, which provides about 200 puffs, contains as much nicotine as a pack of cigarettes. On stressful days, McClain could finish a pod in three hours — and as he and others figure out just how potent these and other e-cigarettes are, many want out.

Some are turning back to combustible cigarettes — or taking them up for the first time — in a dangerous bid to lower their nicotine intake and ultimately get off their vapes.

“Isn’t it ironic that to quit juul I bought cigarettes,” says one Twitter user. Another points out that it’s “strange” that she used the device to quit smoking cigarettes but is now “far more addicted to my Juul than I ever was to cigs.”

The final week of summer will begin with some rain showers followed by a nice stretch of weather.

There will be partly cloudy skies with scattered light showers throughout the morning on Monday. The western half of the state is expected to see the most rain.

Skies are expected to clear throughout the afternoon and evening.

Highs will be in the mid 70s.

Sunshine returns for the rest of the week with temperatures in the 70s.

You can get the forecast anytime here.

Police have arrested two more juveniles in connection to an assault and stabbing that injured a 17-year-old Rockville High School student and another person on a trail in Vernon on Friday night.

The stabbing and assault happened on the Rails to Trails near the Ryefield Apartment Complex just after 10 p.m.

Authorities said an investigation determined that a 17-year-old Rockville High School student was stabbed multiple times in his torso, legs and head and another person was assaulted.

"We do believe there are two groups involved that were fighting. The first group was walking back from the football game when they were attacked by these two juveniles and some others while they walked along the trail," Vernon Police Lt. William Meier said. Police believe that the victim was known to the assailants and that it was not a random act.

According to police, the first juvenile, a 17-year-old Vernon resident, is believed to be the person responsible for stabbing the teen multiple times. He is also believed to have cut another person on the finger.

Police said the second juvenile, a 17-year-old Vernon resident, is responsible for hitting the teen multiple times with a bat, causing serious injuries. 

Officers believe the second juvenile also hit another person with the bat and caused additional injuries. Authorities said the assault took place at the same time and location as the stabbing.

"One of the juveniles allegedly stabbed the victim while the other hit him with a bat. There was also a second victim who was cut on his finger and he was also struck with the bat as well," Lt. Meier added.

Both juveniles were taken into custody early Monday morning. They are each facing charges including assault, conspiracy to commit assault, breach of peace and possession of a dangerous weapon. Police said they are being held in the Hartford Juvenile Detention Facility and will appear in court on Monday.

On Friday, police found a car in an apartment complex on Terrace Drive that was believed to have been involved in the incident. Inside of the vehicle, police said they found a hunting knife, a baseball bat and a wooden pole that had knife blades taped to both ends.

Officers arrested Haley Machholz, 19, of Vernon, and Jakwai Sosa, 20, of Hartford, along with a 15-year-old that was in the car with them on Friday. The three were charged with possession of a weapon in a motor vehicle.

"I believe those three individuals, who we arrested Friday night, were trying to retaliate for the stabbing attack," Lt. Meier said.

"The victim is a Rockville High School student. One of the individuals arrested is a Rockville High School student. The other is a former Rockville High School student," Lt. Meier added.

The investigation remains ongoing and officers said more arrests are expected. Anyone with information is asked to call Vernon Police. Callers may remain anonymous.

There will be extra police and security at Rockville High School on Monday as a precaution, police added.

Connecticut State Police have identified the woman who was killed in a motorcycle crash in Mansfield on Sunday.

Police said 24-year-old Aubrey Primo, of Coventry, was on a motorcycle near Warrenville Road and Laurel Lane in Mansfield when a large tree limb fell and hit her.

She was later pronounced dead.

The accident remains under investigation.

Gov. Ned Lamont will hold a news conference at the State Capitol in Hartford this morning to make an announcement. 

The news conference will be at 10:15 a.m. in the governor's office. 

No additional information was immediately available.

Police are investigating after a car crashed into a parked vehicle in Hartford and sent multiple people to the hospital on Monday morning.

Officers said the collision happened on Vine Street.

The occupants of the car that crashed were transported to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

Police did not say how many people were transported or release details on their injuries.

There is no word on what caused the crash.

Milford police are trying to identify the man who they say broke a glass door to get into a Milford home last week, ransacked a bedroom and stole items from the house.

Police said the break-in happened during the day on Sept. 12 and the man placed items in a bag before leaving out the back door.

Anyone with information is asked to call Milford Police Detective Warwick at (203)783-4730 or email mwarwick@ci.milford.ct.us.

A firefighter is dead and six other people injured after a powerful propane gas explosion Monday ripped through a facility that serves people with disabilities in Farmington, Maine, reducing the building to rubble.

The blast rocked the area and sent dust high into the sky, according to witnesses. The extent of the injuries remained clear, police said hours after the blast, while the investigation was still ongoing. 

The smell of gas at the recently renovated Life Enrichment Advancing People, or LEAP, building was first reported to firefighters at 8:07 a.m., according to Farmington police. The building exploded when firefighters were arriving to the scene. 

The firefighter who died was from the Farmington Fire Department; four other local firefighters were hurt, along with a LEAP employee and a Northstar EMS worker, police said. 

"Our hearts go out to all those impacted by this tragedy," Gov. Janet Mills said in a statement, adding that she was monitoring the situation.

Shocking video on social media showed massive plumes of smoke billowing from the area, and the facility laid to waste. Several emergency responders could be seen, as well as nearby trees covered in debris.

The explosion happened five minutes after children were being picked up at the bus stop in front of the building, Farmington Select Board Member H. Scott Landry said.

Jennifer Damon was in her home on Farmington Falls Road when she felt the explosion.

“The whole house shook twice and the power flickered out,” she said. “I couldn’t imagine what had happened, it was such a shake.”

“I went outside and it was like it was snowing outside,” she added.

Damon said she heard screaming for help. The force of the explosion caused shampoo bottles to fall off shelves at her home.

Drivers were asked to avoid streets near 313 Farmington Falls Road.

Details on what led up to the explosion were not clear. The investigation is ongoing.

LEAP was founded in 1980. Its goal is to help house, care for and engage with people with developmental, cognitive and intellectual disabilities, according to its website.

An odor of gas forced students and staff to evacuate from a school in Milford on Monday morning.

Milford Public School officials said students and staff at JFK Elementary School evacuated the school and were outside around 10:30 a.m.

The students and staff were safe, school officials added.

Shortly after the evacuation, the gas company and Milford Fire Department gave approval for students and staff to return to the classrooms, according to school officials.

Authorities did not release details about the origin of the odor.

No one was injured when a Peter Pan bus went off the side of East Starrs Plain Road in Danbury Monday.

Officials from Peter Pan said in a statement to NBC New York that the bus was contracted with Metro-North to shuttle passengers from West Redding Road in Danbury to the Branchville Station in Ridgefield because of construction on the rail line.

No passengers were on the bus and the female driver was checked out at the scene and is OK, according to Peter Pan.

The bus company and police are investigating the cause of the crash.

The road was closed, but the bus has since been removed.

Hamden police are investigating after a man was robbed at gunpoint on Sunday afternoon.

Officers responded to Pine Street around 3 p.m. after getting a report of an armed street robbery.

According to police, a 30-year-old Wallingford man, told them that he was meeting a relative. He said while he was standing on Pine Street, a vehicle described as a 4-door silver Honda with tinted windows, pulled up next to him.

A man exited the passenger door of the vehicle and pointed a gun at the victim before taking his wallet and cell phone, police said.

Officers said the man who exited the vehicle is described as having a young face and is 5'9" tall.

The vehicle then fled from the area towards Dix Street, authorities said.

The incident remains under investigation.

A 10-year-old girl has died after her family says she contracted a brain-eating amoeba while swimming in a river near her home in Central Texas.

Lily Avant, of Whitney, died nearly a week after doctors confirmed she had contracted Naegleria fowleri, a "brain-eating" amoeba found in fresh water bodies such as ponds, lakes and rivers, her mother's cousin Wendy Scott confirmed Monday to NBC 5.

Scott thanked everyone for their "love and support" and asked that the "country continue to pray for our family."

"Our Lily Mae changed lives and brought unity to a divided nation. It's just like her," Scott said.

Her family said Avant had gone swimming in the Brazos River with dozens of others over the Labor Day weekend. About a week later on Sept. 8, she started suffering from a fever.

Scott said Avant saw a doctor that night.

"They got it checked out. There were several viruses going around the school. It was assumed it's a virus because of the symptoms are exactly the same, so she was sent home," Scott said. "She was brought into the emergency room on Tuesday when she woke up unresponsive. She was eyes open, she was there, but she wasn't speaking. Nothing."

The young girl was eventually transferred to Cook Children's Medical Center in Fort Worth where a spinal tap confirmed Avant had contracted Naegleria fowleri – commonly referred to as "the brain-eating amoeba."

According to the CDC, it is known to cause a brain infection known as Primary Amebic Meningoecephalitis or PAM. The amoeba is typically found in warm freshwater and soil, usually infecting people when contaminated water enters the body through the nose.

Once it enters the nose, it travels to the brain where it causes PAM.

It is almost always fatal, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services. In total, there are five documented cases of survival – four in the U.S. alone.

The CDC reports those who are infected die one to 18 days after symptoms begin, the median being five days.

The Texas Department of State Health Services said while the amoeba itself is common, the infection is extremely rare.

"We average less than one per year in Texas. However, it is extremely serious and almost always fatal. Since it's so rare, we don't know why a few people get sick while millions who swim in natural bodies of water don't," an agency spokesperson explained. "Because the organism is common in lakes and river, we don't recommend people specifically avoid bodies of water where people have contracted the illness."

Avant had been in a medically-induced coma while doctors treated swelling in her brain, her family said.

Before she died, John Crawson, Avant's father, spoke at a prayer vigil Friday evening outside Cook Children's Medical Center. He called his daughter "a fighter" and said she's "stronger than anybody I know." Others described her as "sassy" and a "tomboy."   

Through Avant's battle, her family said they've found a new friendship through Jeremy and Julie Lewis. They lost their son Kyle to PAM in 2010 when he was just 7 years old.

"It is about how fast you can get your child to the doctors. It is about mothers who can sit there and say, 'my child has this' and a doctor doesn't discount what she's saying," Jeremy Lewis said.

Following their son's death, Lewis created the Kyle Lewis Amoeba Awareness Foundation with the goal of informing families of the potential danger of Naegleria Fowleri. Their hope is to save lives and heartache through education and awareness, the family said.

A motorcyclist has serious injuries after a crash on Route 66 in Columbia Sunday night.

Police said the motorcyclist was going east and the driver of a Honda Accord was traveling west, slowed down and was trying to make a left turn onto Pine Street when the vehicles collided at 10:20 p.m. and the motorcyclist was thrown from the bike.

LifeStar transported the motorcyclist to St. Francis Hospital. The other driver had a minor injury and was transported to the Marlborough Clinic.

Police are investigating and ask anyone with information to call Trooper Eckman at Troop K at 860-465-5400.

The mother of a 17-year-old Rockville High School student who was assaulted in Vernon Friday night said her son was walking home on the Rails to Trails from a football game when he was stabbed 10 times and left bleeding.

Carly-Ann Merrill said her son has been involved in an ongoing dispute with another group of teens since May and there was fighting. On Friday night, the 17-year-old was stabbed in the torso, legs and head.

“They left him bleeding, beaten, severely stabbed 10 times,” she said. “I wouldn’t wish that on anybody else ever. I don’t care what somebody did or didn’t do. They don’t deserve that.”

She said she tried to get the school district and police to intervene.

"We do believe there are two groups involved that were fighting. The first group was walking back from the football game when they were attacked by these two juveniles and some others while they walked along the trail," Vernon Police Lt. William Meier said. Police believe that the victim was known to the assailants and that it was not a random act.

Another person was also assaulted Friday night, according to police.

A 17-year-old Vernon resident who is believed to be the person responsible for stabbing the teen multiple times was arrested early Monday morning. He is also believed to have cut another person on the finger.

On Monday morning, police arrested another a 17-year-old Vernon resident who is believed to be responsible for hitting the teen multiple times with a bat, causing serious injuries.

Officers believe the second juvenile also hit another person with the bat and caused additional injuries. Authorities said the assault took place at the same time and location as the stabbing.

"One of the juveniles allegedly stabbed the victim while the other hit him with a bat. There was also a second victim who was cut on his finger and he was also struck with the bat as well," Lt. Meier added.

Both juveniles were taken into custody early Monday morning and face charges including assault, conspiracy to commit assault, breach of peace and possession of a dangerous weapon. Police said they are being held in the Hartford Juvenile Detention Facility and will appear in court on Monday.

On Friday, police made arrests after finding a car in an apartment complex on Terrace Drive that was believed to have been involved in the incident. Inside of the vehicle, police said they found a hunting knife, a baseball bat and a wooden pole that had knife blades taped to both ends.

Officers arrested Haley Machholz, 19, of Vernon, and Jakwai Sosa, 20, of Hartford, along with a 15-year-old who was in the car with them. The three were charged with possession of a weapon in a motor vehicle. Police said they believe they were going to retaliate for the stabbing.

"I believe those three individuals, who we arrested Friday night, were trying to retaliate for the stabbing attack," Lt. Meier said.

Sosa is being held on $15,000 bond. Sosa and Machholz are due in court on Oct. 1.

Merrill is hoping this is an end to the violence.

“It’s horrible. I don’t want anymore. I don’t want anyone else getting hurt. I went out of my way to tell all my kids' friends, don’t. This is not worth it. We’re not doing it. We’re going to handle it the right way,” said Merrill.

Police said the victim is a Rockville High School student, one of the individuals arrested is a Rockville High School student and the other is a former Rockville High School student, according to Lt. Meier.

There will be extra police and security at Rockville High School until further notice as a precaution.

“The safety and security of our students and staff in and out of school is our top priority,” said Vernon Public Schools Superintendent Joseph P. Macary.

He said counselors are available to any student who needs to talk about what happened. 

The investigation remains ongoing and officers said more arrests are expected. Anyone with information is asked to call Vernon Police. Callers can remain anonymous.

Hey big spender. 

The MTA announced a proposed $51.5 billion capital spending plan for 2020-2024, marking a 70 percent increase over its previous four-year plan and its largest one ever by far, as part of an aggressive effort to repair the agency's aging infrastructure and accelerate service enhancements for the millions of New Yorkers who use its public transit system on a daily basis.

In its Monday announcement, the MTA said that its proposal includes more than $40 billion for NYC Transit, $15 billion of which will come from congestion pricing. It has earmarked $7 billion of that to resignal 11 subway lines, starting with the often delay-plagued Lexington Avenue line, and $6.1 billion to add 1,900 new subway cars -- with the goal of easing delays by 10 percent.

Among the other key components:

• Full funding for Phase II of the Second Avenue subway project, which will add three new subway stations in East Harlem to connect to the three Q train stations that opened in 2017 on the Upper East Side. Phase II, when completed, is expected to serve 300,000 people per day. It will also include a new connection with Metro-North Railroad. 

• A combined $11.9 billion will go to subway station improvements, track upgrades and station accessibility (70 more stations would be made accessible in accordance with the Americans With Disabilities Act, meaning more escalators, ramps and elevators).

• About $7 billion will go to new city buses, depot improvements and customer experience upgrades, while $2.5 billion would help the MTA replace its oldest buses and add nearly 200 more to its fleet. The hope is for the MTA to acquire only electric buses starting in 2029.

• Also in the interest of serving its customers, the MTA said the capital plan aims to have East Side Access, which will extend Long Island Rail Road service to the east side of Manhattan via Grand Central Terminal, open in 2022. The LIRR expansion effort also includes creating 9.8 miles of a new third track from Floral Park to Hicksville, which will reduce congestion along the railroad's busy Main Line corridor. The third track project also includes station upgrades and the shuttering of dangerous grade crossings; it's expected to open in 2022 as well. Together, the two projects are expected to increase LIRR capacity by 50 percent.

• Metro-North Railroad will get another $4.7 billion, which will advance New Haven line access to Penn Station via four new stations in the Bronx. Bridges will also get key upgrades and the Queens-Midtown and Hugh L. Carey tunnels will get $58 million for improved ventilation and safety. 

The single largest source of funds for the plan – $25 billion – comes from bonds backed by new revenue streams authorized in this year’s state budget, including $15 billion from central business district tolling that was passed by the legislature and signed into law in April by Gov. Cuomo as part of the state’s FY 2020 budget. The MTA expects to get $10.68 billion from federal funding programs. Another $10 billion will come from bonds backed by newly established revenue sources dedicated to public transportation: a progressive tax on high-end real estate sales and the elimination of the internet tax advantage. The state has pledged $3 billion, subject to approval by the legislature, and the city has been asked to pledge an equal amount. The remaining $9.8 billion will come from the MTA in the form of pay-as-you-go capital contributions and bonds backed by longstanding dedicated taxes, fares and existing toll revenue.

“This proposed 2020-2024 Capital Program – the most ambitious capital plan in the agency’s history – builds on the success of the Subway Action Plan, and with new tools such as DesignBuild and the reorganization that is underway we’re certain we can deliver for our customers,” Patrick Foye, MTA chairman and CEO, said in a statement. "This plan expands service, increases reliability, speeds up the system, and delivers the world’s largest ever investment in accessibility, for both NYC Transit and the MTA’s commuter railroads, and at the end of this five-year period, New Yorkers will see a revitalized and modern system for the 21st century and beyond."

Walmart is giving car seat recycling a boost this month with its first-ever Walmart Car Seat Recycling Event in honor of Best of Baby Month.

Need to update your growing child's old car seat for a new size or looking to replace an expired one? America's largest retailer is currently accepting car seats in exchange for a $30 Walmart gift card that can be used in store or online to buy baby gear.

Starting Monday through Sept. 30, customers can take their used or expired car seats to the nearest participating Walmart Supercenter and receive a $30 Walmart gift card to buy items for their baby. The company said car seats did not have to be purchased at a Walmart store to qualify for trade-in and any brand is accepted. However, booster seats are not eligible for the trade-in program. There is also a two trade-ins per household limit. 

Walmart said it has partnered with TerraCycle, a New Jersey-based recycling company that specializes in recycling hard-to-recycle materials, to help divert materials from landfills.

Terracycle CEO Tom Szaky said the company expects to divert the plastic equivalent of approximately 35 million water bottles from landfills through the program.

"Safety – especially car seat safety – is a top priority for Walmart’s Baby department, so we wanted to use our size and scale to create an event that offered unprecedented access to trade in an outgrown car seat for a gift card – perfect for using on your baby’s next car seat," said Melody Richards, Vice President, Walmart Baby. "Sustainability is of equal importance to Walmart, so we’re happy to work with TerraCycle who will recycle every component of the car seats."

Walmart isn't the only company offering incentives to recycle old and used car seats. Target launched a similar program in 2016 and has recycled over 11.9 million pounds of material through its annual event, according to its website.