Heading into his second—and some argue “disastrous”—year as president, Joe Biden appears to have a problem, or more than one problem, with his gun control agenda: He can’t move anything and according to The Hill, “Democratic lawmakers are showing little appetite for tackling the controversial issue ahead of the 2022 midterm elections.”
His remarks earlier this week marking the fourth anniversary of the mass shooting at Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida included a call on Congress to push gun control. The article suggests Capitol Hill wasn’t listening.
As The Hill observed, “(T)here’s been little to no talk in the Senate Democratic Caucus about picking up two gun control bills that passed the House in March.”
Biden came into office promising to tangle with “the gun lobby.” But critics in the firearms community remind everyone within earshot that the “gun lobby” is made up of millions of law-abiding citizens, and they will vote when they’re under attack. Odds are good millions of those armed citizens will descend on polling places in November to throw Democrats out, and shift the balance of power back to Republicans for a number of reasons, including the economy, energy prices, out-of-control crime and Biden’s insatiable hunger to pass more gun laws.
According to a recent Rasmussen survey, a majority of American adults (63%) think enforcement of existing gun laws is more effective for fighting crime than creating new laws. Breaking things down along party lines, “Sixty-three percent (63%) of Democrats believe the United States needs stricter gun control laws, but that belief is shared by only 25% of Republicans and 37% of those not affiliated with either major party. Sixty-nine percent (69%) of Republicans, 28% of Democrats and 53% of the unaffiliated say the country doesn’t need stricter gun laws.”
Heading into an election year in which dozens of Democrats have already announced plans to either retire or seek other offices—creating a potential for Republicans to pick up several seats in swing districts—Capitol Hill Democrats are understandably not eager to start pushing the politically toxic gun control message.
Democrats also have not forgotten what happened in Virginia last November, when voters turned out in record numbers to replace statewide Democrats with Republicans (governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general) and flip the House of Delegates back to the GOP over education, the economy and guns.
As reported by The Hill, “Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.), who represents a state where hunting is a popular pastime and where nearly two-thirds of adults live in homes with firearms, said the subject of gun control legislation hardly ever came up for discussion within the Senate Democratic Caucus during Biden’s first year in office.”
What may happen toward the end of Biden’s second year is that he becomes something of a lame duck, provided voter fury and frustration continues into November.
Should Republicans capture even one house of Congress, and especially if they take Capitol Hill, Joe Biden’s agenda is going to hit the mother of all speed bumps, say some observers. A GOP victory in November could cause Democrat oldtimers including Nancy Pelosi to look hard at retirement.
Much could happen between now and the midterm elections. Public sentiment is as moveable as the sand in a windstorm, but much might not happen, either. And among the things least likely to happen is the kinds of extremist gun control laws Joe Biden wants.
