pursuasive presentation
Gun control
As mass shootings continued to rock the nation, gun control groups and leading Democrats stepped up their push for stricter gun control laws. A national poll in May found that more than 60 percent of registered voters supported stiffer measures, including more-extensive background checks and a ban on the sale of assault weapons. The 2018 midterm elections marked the first national election in which gun control groups outspent the National Rifle Association (NRA), which has been beset by internal feuds. But gun-rights groups remain formidable, and most congressional Republicans oppose tougher gun laws, saying background checks and other measures are ineffective. Amid the debate, the federal government released figures showing that firearms were involved in nearly 40,000 deaths — nearly two-thirds of them suicides — in 2017, the most in decades.
Mass shootings less than 24 hours apart in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio, in early August have led to increased calls for stronger gun control measures, and some Republican lawmakers have begun to express support for limited changes. President Trump, who initially seemed to support stricter measures such as universal background checks, has given mixed signals on his intent.
Immediately after the shootings, Trump said he was talking with members of Congress about requiring tougher background checks for gun purchasers, and said in a national address on Aug. 5 that he supported “red flag laws,” which allow law enforcement officials to take guns away from people who authorities determine to be a threat to themselves or others. But by mid-month he seemed to be back-pedaling, saying he was “very, very concerned with the Second Amendment,” adding, “people don’t realize we have very strong background checks right now.” He also said of shootings, “I don’t want people to forget that this is a mental health problem.” However, two days later, Trump said he favored plugging some loopholes in the background check system. 1
Gun-rights lobbyists, most notably the National Rifle Association (NRA), and most congressional Republicans continue to oppose universal background checks, questioning their effectiveness and legality. Many Democrats, meanwhile, say red flag laws alone are not enough to significantly reduce gun violence. 2
In El Paso, 22 people were killed and more than two dozen injured on Aug. 3, when a gunman opened fire at a crowded Walmart with an assault rifle, targeting Mexicans and Mexican-Americans. Patrick Crusius, 21, of Allen, Texas, surrendered to police and was charged with capital murder; he also could face federal hate crime charges after authorities discovered he had posted a white supremacist screed on the “invasion of Hispanics” shortly before the shooting. 3
In Dayton, Connor Betts, 24, opened fire early on Aug. 4 in a popular entertainment district using a .223-caliber rifle, killing his sister and eight others and wounding more than two dozen. Police patrolling the area killed Betts within 30 seconds. 4
The Dayton and El Paso incidents were not the only mass shootings in August. On Aug. 31 a man armed with a military-style rifle killed seven people and injured 23 during a shooting rampage in western Texas. 5
Gun control has long been in the political spotlight, and the issue’s profile rose sharply following the Valentine’s Day 2018 shooting at a high school in Parkland, Fla., that killed 14 students and three others. That shooting led thousands of young people and others — primarily Democrats — to push for new gun control measures. 6
Following the El Paso and Dayton shootings, Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., said he was “confident Congress will be able to find common ground on the so-called red flag issue.” Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina had earlier proposed legislation offering federal grants to help states enact and enforce such laws. Some analysts say passage would represent the most significant gun control measure in 20 years, although Democrats see red flag laws as only a start. 7
The Democratic-controlled House passed two gun control bills in February. One would require federal background checks for all gun sales and transfers, including those sold online and at gun shows; the other would allow a review period of up to 10 days for background checks on firearms purchases. Supporters say the measures would help end the gun epidemic. But a Republican opponent, Rep. Doug Collins of Georgia, said such bill “foolishly” presume that “criminals who flout existing laws will suddenly submit themselves to background checks.” 8
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., has yet to act on the legislation. On Aug. 8, he said gun measures will be “front and center” when the Senate reconvenes in September after its August recess. 9 Meanwhile, after the shootings more than 200 mayors, including those of El Paso and Dayton, wrote to the Senate, urging senators to return from their summer recess to vote on gun control measures. But McConnell refused, saying the legislation does not have enough support to merit a special session. 10
The Democratic-controlled House Judiciary Committee decided to come back from its summer break a week early to vote on gun control bills that would ban large-capacity ammunition magazines, implement red flag laws and ban those convicted of a hate crime from buying a gun. 11
Rep. Michael R. Turner, a Republican who represents Dayton, said he would support an end to the sale of military-style weapons to civilians — a reversal of his earlier position. “The carnage these military-style weapons are able to produce when available to the wrong people is intolerable,” said Turner, whose daughter and a family friend were across the street from the Dayton shooter when the killings occurred. 12
The Texas and Ohio mass shootings occurred against the backdrop of the 2020 campaign, in which Democratic presidential candidates are focusing on gun control as a signature issue. 13 “If you need a license to drive a car, you should need a license to buy and own a firearm,” Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey declared at a Democratic candidate debate in June. 14
Jacob D. Charles, executive director of Duke University’s Center for Firearms Law, says the national mood on guns “feels different now. There’s a lot of energy on the Democratic side. They’re talking about guns and regulations in ways that were not politically possible a decade ago.”
In another indication that the recent mass shootings may have changed the national mood on gun rights, during the three weeks after the El Paso and Dayton shootings, at least 30 people in 18 states were arrested for making threats about carrying out a mass killing. Some of them were found to have massive arsenals in their homes. Authorities said such copy-cat occurrences often spike after a mass shooting but said the uNPRecedented surge may be due to the public being on alert about such threats and thus more apt to report them. 15
A Quinnipiac University poll in May of nearly 1,100 registered voters found that 61 percent of respondents supported stricter gun control measures. The numbers were higher for certain controls: 94 percent of voters want background checks for all gun buyers, more than three-quarters support gun licensing and nearly two-thirds support a ban on the sale of assault weapons. Immediately after the Parkland shooting, two-thirds of respondents favored stricter gun control, compared with 47 percent in December 2015. 16
According to the most recent figures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), nearly 40,000 Americans died from firearms in 2017, the most since 1968. Almost two-thirds were suicides. 17
The growing clamor for gun control comes at a time when the NRA, the nation’s leading proponent of gun rights, is struggling with internal turmoil — including legal troubles, financial misconduct allegations and departures of top staff members — which some observers say could hinder its effectiveness in upcoming battles over gun control. 18 But the NRA remains a potent force in Washington and in statehouses across the country, and it is expected to continue to energize pro-gun rights voters.
“Infighting and accusations playing out almost daily in the national media regarding the NRA have not been helpful,” said Chris LaCivita, a Republican political consultant at FP1 Strategies, a campaign consulting firm in Arlington, Va. “Clearly it will have an impact in the NRA’s ability to raise money, which would be used in elections to turn out its membership.” But LaCivita said he believes gun-rights supporters will still turn out strongly in next year’s election. 19
New Activism
Student survivors of the Parkland shooting have discussed their frustration with inaction on gun control legislation on TV news programs and in legislative bodies, including a U.S. House committee. Parkland students also spurred a nationwide school walkout the month after the shooting, and survivors organized a national March for Our Lives shortly after that, in which millions of people across the country, including 200,000 in Washington, D.C., took to the streets to protest gun violence. 20
The students “took the story and refused to let it fall off the front pages,” says Adam Winkler, a professor of constitutional law at the University of California, Los Angeles, and expert on gun policy. The movement continues to gain ground because many Americans are weary of mass shootings, he says.
This week the Parkland students unveiled their own gun control proposal, called “A Peace Plan for a Safer America,” which among other things would create a national licensing and gun registry, ban assault weapons and high capacity magazines and create a national director of gun violence prevention. 21
Public pressure for stricter gun laws began to build after the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings in Newtown, Conn., in December 2012, in which 27 people were killed, including 20 first-graders. Since then, 49 people died in a shooting at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Fla., in 2016, and 58 died in a shooting at a Las Vegas country music festival in 2017, the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history. 22
Frustration over gun violence is driving young people to the polls in increasing numbers. Before the 2018 midterm elections, Florida saw a surge of voter registrations among 17- to 21-year-olds. More than 35 percent of 18- to 29-year-olds voted nationwide in 2018, up 16 percent from 2014, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. 23
“The student activism that emerged after Parkland tapped into something very deep in the American political psyche and was able to motivate voters in a way that I had not seen voters prioritize this issue,” said U.S. Rep. Katherine Clark, a Massachusetts Democrat. 24
“The biggest change is not about gun reform, it’s how we look at voting,” said Adam Alhanti, a Parkland senior who has worked to help young people around the country register to vote. “We used to think about smoking cigarettes or driving without a curfew or going to a strip club when we turned 18. Now it’s about taking voting seriously.” 25
In the 2018 midterm elections, Democratic challengers advocating stricter gun control measures defeated at least 15 incumbent House Republicans with “A” ratings from the NRA. 26 Gun control groups for the first time outspent the NRA, with noNPRofit organizations such as Everytown for Gun Safety, based in New York City, and the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, based in Washington, D.C., spending nearly twice as much as the gun-rights group. 27
Gun-rights activists remain passionate. In the wake of a mass shooting at a municipal building this spring that killed 12 in Virginia Beach, Va., Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam ordered a special session in July to discuss gun control measures. But gun-rights advocates, as well as gun control supporters, turned out en masse, and the session abruptly adjourned after 90 minutes. The GOP-controlled General Assembly said it would take up the measures after the November elections, in which all 140 seats are on the ballot. 28
The number of firearm deaths in 2017 rose by more than 1,000 from the previous year, increasing to a rate of 12 per 100,000 people, according to the CDC. It was the third straight annual rise in the firearm death rate, which had held steady through the 2000s and early 2010s. 29
Researchers are studying whether states with stricter gun control laws have fewer gun deaths. A 2019 study in the Journal of General Internal Medicine reviewed firearms laws and gun-related homicide and suicide rates in 10 states from 1991 to 2016. It found that homicide rates fell in states that implemented universal background checks for gun purchases and banned handgun ownership for those who had committed violent misdemeanors. Laws that required police to issue concealed-carry permits to qualified applicants were associated with higher homicide rates. 30
Federal and State Legislation
This summer, congressional Democrats introduced bills that would:
· Establish a national gun sales database.
· Require universal, fingerprint-based background checks for would-be gun buyers.
· Provide incentives for state and local governments to require gun purchasers to obtain a license.
· Prohibit the dissemination of instructions explaining how to use a 3-D printer to make plastic guns.
So far the Senate has not considered any of the measures. 31
After the Parkland shootings, Senate Majority Leader McConnell said he did not think Congress could do much to prevent school shootings. “I don’t think at the federal level there’s much that we can do other than appropriate funds,” he said. “I think it’s basically a local decision.” 32
The city of Washington, D.C., and at least 15 states, including Illinois and New Jersey, have passed red flag laws. 33
A study by the nonpartisan Violence Prevention Research Program at the University of California at Davis found red flag laws may help prevent mass shootings. It found more than 20 cases in which California’s red flag law was used to try to prevent mass shootings. No shootings occurred in those instances. 34
The NRA says red flag laws undermine the right to due process. But Sen. Graham, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, has expressed support for these measures, saying the Parkland shooting might have been prevented if a red flag law had been in effect in Florida at the time. Florida passed such a law this past spring. 35
States such as New Mexico and Nevada recently enacted laws requiring background checks for all gun sales, and Nevada banned the sale and possession of bump stocks, which enable a semiautomatic rifle to fire faster. Bump stocks were used in the Las Vegas mass shooting. 36 California even passed a law requiring background checks for those wanting to purchase ammunition. Several gun-rights advocates have filed lawsuits to block the measure. 37
On the other hand, Texas is loosening gun restrictions with laws taking effect Sept. 1. These include laws preventing homeowners and landlords from banning firearms on their property and allowing people to carry firearms in houses of worship.
Harel Shapira, an assistant professor of sociology at the University of Texas who studies the gun-rights movement, told The Washington Post that he doubts the El Paso and Dayton shootings will prompt a rethinking of the laws. Quite the opposite, he said: Those who support gun rights might “double down” and seek even looser gun controls in Texas and elsewhere.
“A lot of legislatures are responding to these shootings by saying the way to make our country safer and the correct thing to do is not to restrict access to guns, but actually to make it easier for people to have access,” he said. 38
But Jennifer Baker, who resigned recently as spokeswoman for the NRA’s lobbying arm, said gun-rights groups face a formidable challenge. “For the first time, the gun control groups are well-funded and have … efforts nationwide,” she said.
Baker said former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, a billionaire and a vocal advocate for gun control, has provided gun control groups with “an infinite amount of resources,” allowing them “to have a presence in the state capitals … and to really put forth the effort [like] we’ve never seen.” 39
Supreme Court
The U.S. Supreme Court, which recognized citizens’ rights to have a gun in their homes for self-defense more than a decade ago, agreed in January to hear a challenge to a New York City law that had allowed residents to take their guns to shooting ranges in the city but not to a second home or shooting range outside the city.
To avoid possibly losing the case and jeopardizing other states’ gun control measures, city officials amended the law to relax and allow owners to take their weapons to a home, business or shooting range outside city limits. It is unclear what will happen with the legal challenge. 40
Trevor Burrus, a research fellow at the libertarian Cato Institute in Washington, D.C., says, “The justices might eventually feel compelled to moot this New York case. Some of them might be kind of mad about it. They know there needs to be some kind of guidance from the Supreme Court. This was supposed to be the case [that would do that].”
[1] Michael Collins et al., “Trump considers tougher background checks for gun buyers after shootings in El Paso and Dayton,” USA Today, Aug. 7, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y24rtfyb; John Wagner and Felicia Sonmez, “Trump condemns white supremacy, focuses on combating mental illness over new gun-control measures,” The Washington Post, Aug. 5, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y5e6zkxq; Annie Karni and Maggie Haberman, “After Lobbying by Gun Rights Advocates, Trump Sounds a Familiar Retreat,” The New York Times, Aug. 19, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y5x2rxvo; Nicholas Wu, Michael Collins and John Fritze, “Trump reverses again on gun background checks, says he backs them and never told NRA otherwise,” USA Today, Aug. 21, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/yxkgjjj8.
[2] Josh Dawsey and Seung Min Kim, “Trump’s openness to extensive background checks for gun buys draws warning from NRA,” The Washington Post, Aug. 8, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y6a2xcl6.
[3] Brian Todd, Christina Maxouris and Amir Vera, “The El Paso shooting suspect showed no remorse or regret, police say,” CNN, Aug. 6, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y2d7lpxl; Mitch Smith, Rick Rojas and Campbell Robertson, “Dayton Gunman Had Been Exploring ‘Violent Ideologies,’ Police Say,” The New York Times, Aug. 6, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/yyg9d9nz.
[4] Mark Osborne, Bill Hutchinson and Christina Carrega, “9 dead, 27 injured in Dayton shooting; suspect’s sister among victims,” ABC News, Aug. 5, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y2epctv8.
[5] Ben Guarino, “Texas gunman who killed 7 was fired from job on day of rampage,” The Washington Post, Sept. 2, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y54qohts.
[6] Laurel Wamsley and Richard Gonzales, “17 People Died in the Parkland Shooting. Here are Their Names,” NPR, Feb. 15, 2018, https://tinyurl.com/yajrjeuw.
[7] Sheryl Gay Stolberg, “ ‘Red Flag’ Gun Control Bills Pick Up Momentum With GOP in Congress,” The New York Times, Aug. 6, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y3x2bgg9.
[8] Jacob Pramuk, “House Passes Another Bill to Strengthen Gun Background Checks as Trump Pledges to Veto,” CNBC, Feb. 28, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y3954ylm.
[9] “US shootings: Trump says ‘serious’ talks on gun control under way,” BBC News, Aug. 9, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y2a3dghs.
[10] Lisa Mascaro and Matthew Daly, “McConnell Wants to Consider Gun Background Checks in Fall,” The Associated Press, Aug. 9. 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y6s8rogc.
[11] Gabriella Munoz, “House Democrats Eye New Gun Control Provisions, Plan to Hold ‘Military-Style Assault Weapon’ Hearing,” The Washington Times, Aug. 16, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y5zq3l3p.
[12] Colby Itkowitz, “GOP Rep. Michael R. Turner of Dayton Backs Assault Weapon Ban, Magazine Limits,” The Washington Post, Aug. 6, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y4yzrje6.
[13] Sabrina Siddiqui, “No More Tiptoeing: 2020 Democrats Put Gun Control at Center of Debate,” The Guardian, Aug. 7, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y3ovjeeg.
[14] Veronica Rocha et al., “The first Democratic debate, night 1,” CNN, June 27, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y4bqof54.
[15] Dayton Jorge L. Ortiz, ‘People are on edge’: Mass violence threats — at least 30 in 18 states — have surged since El Paso,” USA Today, Aug. 22, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/yyyybmbm.
[16] “U.S Voter Support For Abortion Is High, Quinnipiac University National Poll Finds; 94 Percent Back Universal Gun Background Checks,” Quinnipiac University, May 22, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y3b8a8c5; and “U.S. Support For Gun Control Tops 2-1, Highest Ever, Quinnipiac University National Poll Finds,” Quinnipiac University, Feb. 20, 2018, https://tinyurl.com/y5on2z6b.
[17] “Firearm Mortality by State,” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2017, https://tinyurl.com/y3u3yh9q; Sarah Mervosh, “Nearly 40,000 People Died from Guns in U.S. Last Year, Highest in 50 Years,” The New York Times, Dec. 18, 2018, https://tinyurl.com/yc2smkev; and Jamie Ducharme, “U.S. Suicide Rates Are the Highest They’ve Been Since World War II,” Time, June 20, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/yxl6oz8s.
[18] Sara Murray and Veronica Stracqualursi, “Another NRA official leaves organization amid turmoil,” CNN, July 18, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y34atnf5.
[19] Alex Isenstadt, “NRA meltdown has Trump campaign sweating,” Politico, July 3, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y5dvc2vr.
[20] “ ‘Gun Violence Is an Epidemic’: MSD Survivor Testifies on Capitol Hill,” NBC Miami, Feb. 6, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y263r4js; Margaret Kramer and Jennifer Harlan, “Parkland Shooting: Where Gun Control and School Safety Stand Today,” The New York Times, Feb. 13, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y3ky4phr; “How many people attended March for Our Lives? Crowd in D.C. estimated at 200,000,” CBS News, March 25, 2018, https://tinyurl.com/ya3334bl; and Vivian Yee and Alan Blinder, “National School Walkout: Thousands Protest Against Gun Violence in U.S.,” The New York Times, March 14, 2018, https://tinyurl.com/y8plwxan.
[21] Jacqueline Alemany and Matt Viser, “Parkland Students Unveil Sweeping Gun Control Proposal and Hope for a Youth Voting Surge in 2020,” The Washington Post, Aug. 21, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y67ayzwr.
[22] “Deadliest Mass Shootings in Modern US History Fast Facts,” CNN, Aug. 19, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y56cvzkt.
[23] Brakkton Booker, “After Parkland, Young Voters Were Galvanized, Activists Vow To ‘Continue To Organize,’ ” NPR, Nov. 8, 2018, https://tinyurl.com/yy3rxp6j; Lois K. Solomon, “As midterms approach, David Hogg and youth organizers make final vote push,” South Florida Sun-Sentinel, Nov. 2, 2018, https://tinyurl.com/y36rbzwo; and Tara Golshan, “Young people, women, voters in cities: How Democrats won in 2018, by the numbers,” Vox, April 26, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y6yxz8k4.
[24] Laura Krantz, “Youth activists push gun control to forefront of 2020 campaign,” The Boston Globe, July 13, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y4p3s29z.
[25] Solomon, op. cit.
[26] Hannah Coulter, “Gun control advocates won plenty of victories in 2018. What will 2020 bring?” NBC News, Dec. 12, 2018, https://tinyurl.com/y4sqslmo.
[27] Alex Gangitano, “Democrats look to capitalize on turmoil inside NRA,” The Hill, July 23, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y5urghfb.
[28] Gregory S. Schneider, Laura Vozzella and Antonio Olivo, “Gun debate ends abruptly in Virginia as GOP-controlled legislature adjourns after 90 minutes,” The Washington Post, July 9, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/yyrrvtgm.
[29] Mervosh, op. cit.
[30] Richard Florida and Nicole Javorsky, “The 3 Gun-Control Laws That Work Best in the U.S.,” CityLab, April 5, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y4fcwatb.
[31] Claire Hansen, “Democratic Lawmakers Seek Universal Fingerprint-Based Background Checks for Gun Buyers,” U.S. News & World Report, July 26, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y3catmmn; and Asher Stockler, “Two Major Gun Control Bills Unveiled By Congressional Democrats,” Newsweek, June 13, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y2ovjkfq.
[32] Daniel Desrochers, “McConnell says there isn’t much federal government can do about school shootings,” Lexington Herald-Leader, July 3, 2018, https://tinyurl.com/y4ofs2tj.
[33] Doug Stanglin, “Should guns be seized from those who pose threats? More states saying yes to red flag laws,” USA Today, May 5, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y4cvftac.
[34] Peter Jamison, “ ‘Red Flag’ Laws May Play Role in Preventing Mass Shootings, Study Finds,” The Washington Post, Aug. 19, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y69juyss.
[35] Ibid.
[36] Brianna Provenzano, “As the Republican Senate Blocks Reform, States Pass Their Own Gun Control Laws,” Pacific Standard, June 21, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y2nbvp7m.
[37] Vandana Ravikumar, “Gun rights advocates sue over California’s ‘absurd’ law requiring background checks for ammo sales,” USA Today, July 25, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/yxbjeoj2.
[38] Hannah Knowles, “Texas, reeling after El Paso shooting, is about to loosen gun laws,” The Washington Post, Aug. 7, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y2mtggbp.
[39] Tim Mak, “NRA Facing Most Formidable Opposition Yet, a Year after Parkland,” NPR, Feb. 14, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y2mw4mfo.
[40] Robert Barnes, “New York eased gun law hopeful Supreme Court would drop Second Amendment case — but that hasn’t happened yet,” The Washington Post, Aug. 11, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/yxjanlrl; and Adam Liptak, “Fearing Supreme Court Loss, New York Tries to Make Gun Case Vanish,” The New York Times, May 27, 2019, https://tinyurl.com/y46ht9uq.