A new Rasmussen survey reveals a plurality of likely voters believe mental health is more to blame for mass shootings in this country than guns, and a smaller percentage blame family or school problems.
The poll was conducted Dec. 17-19 among 1,099 likely voters by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95 percent level of confidence.
The results contrast sharply with reactions from President Joe Biden and other Democrats who used the recent school shooting in Madison, Wisconsin to push their gun control agenda, which had nothing to do with the circumstances of the tragedy.
BIDEN EXPLOITS WISCONSIN SCHOOL TRAGEDY
According to Rasmussen, 41 percent of likely voters think mental health is more to blame for mass shootings while 26 percent say access to guns is at fault. Another 13 percent blame social media and 10 percent think family problems contribute. Six percent blame school problems are to blame.
Overall, 50 percent of survey respondents still believe stricter gun laws would help prevent mass shootings, which is up from 44 percent who expressed that belief following the mass shooting in Lewiston, Maine back in 2023. Forty percent disagree, saying tougher gun laws are not the answer and 10 percent are not sure.
Breaking things down by party alliance, 49 percent of Democrats say passing new gun laws would do more to reduce gun-related violent crime, but only 18 percent of Republicans and 24 percent of Independents agree.
Conversely, 66 percent of Republicans and 59 percent of Independents think enforcement of existing laws would be more effective, and 45 percent of Democrats concur.
Another Rasmussen revelation is that 77 percent of Democrats think stricter gun laws would help prevent shootings like the one in Wisconsin, while only 31 percent of Republicans and 40 percent of Independents agree.
Among Republicans, 47 percent think mental health is more to blame for mass shootings in this country, a view shared by 34 percent of Democrats and 41 percent of Independents. Also, Rasmussen said 41 percent of Democrats, 9 percent of Republicans and 27 percent of Independents share that opinion.
While 55 percent of women think stronger gun control laws would help prevent mass shootings, only 44 percent of men think so, Rasmussen said.
