BostonGlobe.com Political Headlines - December 18, 2012

• Patrick renewing push for tougher Mass. gun laws: Governor Patrick and other gun control advocates are renewing their push for tougher gun laws in the aftermath of the massacre at a Conn. elementary school. Globe reporters Milton J. Valencia and Michael Levenson outline.

• Former Mass. Gov. Dukakis says Senate appointment 'unlikely' but does not firmly rule it out: Dukakis said he had not received any feelers or contacts from President Obama or Governor Deval Patrick. Globe reporter Noah Bierman elaborates.

• Common ground on guns: In the wake of Newtown, a big question is whether gun owners can change - something that would require a different rhetoric, and a different culture. Globe columnist Joanna Weiss reports.

• 'Benghazi Show' jumps the shark: Republicans had a good point, at first. It was crucial to investigate an attack that killed four Americans, including an ambassador. But there is such a thing as overkill. Globe columnist Farah Stockman writes.