Sen. Dianne Feinstein, one of more outspoken gun-control advocates in Congress, said today that both Mitt Romney and President Obama should give the gun control issue a lot of "consideration," but said now is a "bad time" to press the issue politically.

"I think that they should give it a lot of consideration, I think this is a bad time to embrace such a new subject," the California Democrat said said on "Fox News Sunday." "There has been no action because there is no outrage out there, people haven't rallied forward."

A 2009 Gallup poll found that only 44 percent of people do not support stricter gun laws down from a high of 78 percent in 1990. However, more targeted polls find that there is more support for banning certain types of weapons.

Feinstein co-sponsored the original assault weapon ban signed into law by President Bill Clinton in 1994, but that law expired in 2004 under President George W. Bush. Feinstein has fought to reinstate the ban and more recently introduced legislation to limit the size of ammunition sold.

Gun control advocates frequently blame the influence of the National Rifle Association, which has more than 4 million members, as the reason for the lack of any gun control legislation. Pro-gun groups argue that any restrictions placed on gun rights violate the Second Amendment.

White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said Friday that the President has no plans to introduce any new policies to address gun violence.

"The president believes that we need to take common-sense measures that protect Second Amendment rights of Americans, while ensuring that those who should not have guns under existing law do not get them," he said.

Get more pure politics at ABC News.com/Politics and a lighter take on the news at OTUSNews.com