With the rise in school shootings and other gun-related violence over the past decade, so too has the support for gun control reform risen. A recent Washington Post-ABC News poll shows overwhelming majorities of the public, even Republicans, support basic gun control measures such as universal background checks and "red flag" laws, where judges can order guns confiscated from people who are deemed to be dangerous. However, despite the popularity of these measures, Republicans in Congress have not moved an inch on the issue. The only noticeable change in gun control reform at all was through an executive action, when President Trump banned "bump stocks," capable of giving semi-automatic weapons the fire rate of automatic weapons. Why have Republicans in Congress failed to support any gun control legislation despite its popularity with Republican voters? The answer lies in two groups: lobbying groups and the White House.
It is well known that members of Congress need money to run reelection campaigns, and the groups against gun control have plenty of money to spend. The National Rifle Association alone spent over $10,000,000 on campaign contributions and outside spending during the 2018 election cycle, with almost all going to Republican campaigns, according to OpenSecrets. For reference, the largest organization in favor of gun control, Giffords, spent roughly $7,000,000 on campaign contributions and outside spending, and even then the vast majority of its money went to Democratic campaigns. In exchange for the support of one of the most powerful PACs in the country, these candidates must follow the NRA's line on gun control: none at all. The description from OpenSecrets states that even the most moderate of gun control reforms are opposed by the organization. Thus, in spite of the vast majority of Republicans wanting some reforms, the influence of lobbyist groups help Republican candidates largely stay firm on the issue, dooming gun control legislation in the Republican-held Senate.
The White House presents another challenge for proponents of gun control reform. Although President Trump has passed a bump stock ban through executive action, the Los Angeles Times notes that Trump has also promised sweeping gun control reforms in the wake of mass shootings, only to walk back those statements days later under the pressure of groups against gun control, like the aforementioned NRA. With the ease of convinced Trump to take a hard line against gun control, any attempt at reform is doomed unless Congress can muster the Republican votes to override a veto, a nearly impossible challenge in the modern era of polarization.
Universal background checks and red flag laws are one of the few issues that Democrat and Republican voters largely agree on, but in Congress, they are as polarized as any other issue in America. Unlike voters, who can simply vote what they believe in, members of Congress are bound by the political realities of government. The massive influence of the hardline pro-gun lobby and the President of the United States keeps Republicans in line, even as Democrats support gun control legislation without such overwhelming popularity. In 2020, should Democrats win the Presidency but not the Senate, the trend would look to continue, as the influence of the gun lobby is too strong. However, if Democrats win control of the Senate and the Presidency, then the issue may flow in the other direction: gun control legislation without broad public support would be passed, perhaps polarizing the issue among the general public like so many others. For now, however, moderate gun control reform is overwhelmingly popular, but powerful forces against them prevent their passage.
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| Not all gun control reforms are popular, but background checks and red flag laws are. |
The White House presents another challenge for proponents of gun control reform. Although President Trump has passed a bump stock ban through executive action, the Los Angeles Times notes that Trump has also promised sweeping gun control reforms in the wake of mass shootings, only to walk back those statements days later under the pressure of groups against gun control, like the aforementioned NRA. With the ease of convinced Trump to take a hard line against gun control, any attempt at reform is doomed unless Congress can muster the Republican votes to override a veto, a nearly impossible challenge in the modern era of polarization.
Universal background checks and red flag laws are one of the few issues that Democrat and Republican voters largely agree on, but in Congress, they are as polarized as any other issue in America. Unlike voters, who can simply vote what they believe in, members of Congress are bound by the political realities of government. The massive influence of the hardline pro-gun lobby and the President of the United States keeps Republicans in line, even as Democrats support gun control legislation without such overwhelming popularity. In 2020, should Democrats win the Presidency but not the Senate, the trend would look to continue, as the influence of the gun lobby is too strong. However, if Democrats win control of the Senate and the Presidency, then the issue may flow in the other direction: gun control legislation without broad public support would be passed, perhaps polarizing the issue among the general public like so many others. For now, however, moderate gun control reform is overwhelmingly popular, but powerful forces against them prevent their passage.
Works Cited
DeBonis, Mike, and Emily Guskin. “Americans of Both Parties Overwhelmingly Support 'Red Flag' Laws, Expanded Background Checks for Gun Buyers, Washington Post-ABC News Poll Finds.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 9 Sept. 2019, https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/americans-of-both-parties-overwhelmingly-support-red-flag-laws-expanded-gun-background-checks-washington-post-abc-news-poll-finds/2019/09/08/97208916-ca75-11e9-a4f3-c081a126de70_story.html.
“Giffords: Summary.” OpenSecrets.org, https://www.opensecrets.org/orgs/summary.php?id=D000068779.
Megerian, Chris. “Wary of Alienating His Base, Trump Retreats on Gun Control Proposals.” Los Angeles Times, 20 Aug. 2019, https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2019-08-20/trump-retreats-from-gun-control-proposals.
“Giffords: Summary.” OpenSecrets.org, https://www.opensecrets.org/orgs/summary.php?id=D000068779.
Megerian, Chris. “Wary of Alienating His Base, Trump Retreats on Gun Control Proposals.” Los Angeles Times, 20 Aug. 2019, https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2019-08-20/trump-retreats-from-gun-control-proposals.
“National Rifle Assn: Summary.” OpenSecrets.org, https://www.opensecrets.org/orgs/summary.php?id=d000000082&cycle=2018.
Brandon, I appreciate your post about the gridlock in our national legislator over gun control issues. It seems as if gun control is one of the most hotly debated topics at both the state and national level. In my Colorado Legislator class we learned about a situation where a Republican state representative in Colorado co-sponsored a red-flag bill through the General Assembly back in the early 2000's and ended up losing his seat in the next election, mainly because a gun rights group was able to oppose him and sponsor another Republican candidate in the primary that was more loyal to gun rights. Not only did they oust the guy who proposed gun regulation, but they sent a message to other Republicans within the state that if they voted for or sponsored any gun legislation then they would organize against them next time they were up for re-election. With that being said, we can see that exact same situation in the national legislator with representatives (especially Republicans who rely on the NRA for campaign support) who are to scared of the gun lobby to sponsor even vote for common sense gun legislation, even though their constituents might want them to. Like you mentioned, this is one of those issues where our legislators are actually more polarized than the general public is, mainly because they are scared of groups like NRA who have tremendous amounts political power within our country.
ReplyDeleteBrandon, first of all, I would like to compliment you on how well written this blog is. I believe it was a very non-partisan piece which can be hard to construct especially on a topic as sensitive to some as this. In a time when politics are consistently Republicans vs. Democrats, I believe you made a fantastic argument that the real competition is between lobbyist groups (in this case the NRA) vs. all politicians. It is so incredibly frustrating to me that the opinion of the majority of people in what is supposed to be a democratic state is not heard on a topic that is so major in today's society. While I am typically a supporter of the constitution and the way our political system works, this example of 'money equals power' as well as others similar to this is something I wish we could eliminate from our political system for good. Overall, I think you did a great job on this blog, especially by allowing the reader to see a different side of politics that much of the general public does not realize.
ReplyDeleteBrandon, this was a great post! I did not know many details on how powerful the gun lobby is in the United States, especially the NRA. I completely agree that the two main forces against gun control reform would be lobbying efforts and the current president. I believe that lobbying is directly prohibiting the influence of the majority of the public on issues like gun control. If we were to take the money out of politics, and limit lobbying capabilities, we may actually be able to get some common sense reform in gun legislation, that the vast majority of Americans actually support.
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