It’s now official because it has been reported by USA Today; Democrats are “flooding the airwaves” with gun control advertising in the lead-up to the midterm elections.
The report only reinforces the long-held belief that Democrats are “the party of gun control.” It might also backfire as an election strategy, bringing routinely lethargic gun owners out of their easy chairs in November to vote in order to protect their Second Amendment rights.
The midterm election will likely determine who is in charge on Capitol Hill. That translates to enabling President Donald Trump’s efforts to quietly remake the federal courts by appointing conservative judges. As noted by the Los Angeles Times, the president has been busy appointing conservatives to the courts, although he still faces the hurdle of naming judges to the most liberal court in the nation, the Ninth Circuit in San Francisco. It holds authority over all the western states, and it is a hotbed of gun control activity in California, Oregon and Washington.
According to the USA Today article, “Democrats are driving the surge in advertising favoring gun control as polling shows the public generally supports stricter laws covering the sale of firearms and overwhelmingly supports expanded background checks.
“It could be a gamble,” the report adds, “given that curbing access to guns has long been considered the third rail of politics. For decades, prominent Democratic candidates, especially in battleground states, have sought to reassure voters of their support for protections under the Second Amendment for the right to bear arms.”
But is that support real, or just election cycle make-believe?
Here’s what the story also noted that should raise alarms among Second Amendment activists: “In House races – a good gauge for comparison, since they happen in every district, every two years – pro-gun-control spots this year represented about 67 percent of those with explicit messages on guns, compared to 26 percent in 2016 and 6 percent in 2014. All but one of those ads in favor of gun control this year were funded by Democrats.”
USA Today quoted Lanae Erickson Hatalsky, described as the vice president for social policy and politics at the center-left think tank, Third Way.
“Republicans are on defense on guns in most of the House races, because the suburban women who will decide those elections strongly support commonsense gun-safety laws,” she said.
But just what are those “commonsense gun safety laws?” Gun rights activists are always quick to note that most mass shooters have passed background checks, or bypassed them altogether, such as Sandy Hook killer Adam Lanza and Springfield, Oregon shooter Kip Kinkel. Both murdered their parents and used guns taken from their respective homes.
If “common sense” translates to more restrictions on the rights of law-abiding citizens to buy, own and carry firearms, it’s going to be a hard sell, provided gun owners vote. If they feel threatened, past history strongly suggests that gun owners will overcome their lethargy and surprise the pollsters in November.
