On the day of the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, two new petitions were added to the Obama administration's home-brewed "We the People" petitioning system.

One called on the White House to "immediately address the issue of gun control" through legislation; the other demanded the Westboro Baptist Church be "legally recognize[d]" as a hate group.

The former has nearly 200,000 signatures. The latter is well on its way to 300,000.

Spurred by WBC threats to picket funerals of deceased Sandy Hook victims, the petition is now officially the most popular "We the People" petition ever posted on the site since its launch in September of last year.

Though it isn't under strict obligation to reply to this petition despite its promise to react to entries that surpass 25,000 signatures, the White House must issue a response.

President Obama was moved to respond to the petition calling for gun control legislation, which has 70,000 fewer signatories.

If the White House decides to arbitrarily ignore its own promises and leapfrog over the WBC petition — the most popular petition to date — the entire system becomes null and void.

Meanwhile, there are two other "We the People" petitions of note: One requesting charges be brought against Meet The Press host David Gregory for brandishing a 30-round assault rifle magazine on-air, and another urging the US to keep Piers Morgan because "no one in the UK wants him back."

Neither had over 25,000 signatures at the time of writing.

[photo via AP]