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Gun control and the Republican party (Part 2)
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(Photo courtesy of Oleg Volk)
In recent times, gun owners and the Republican party (GOP) have had a mutually beneficial relationship. By the same token, when the GOP is out of power in Washington, gun owners suffer. But what if the Democrat party was rehabilitated? While this would benefit self-defense supporters, it would devastate the GOP.
The GOP values the Second Amendment:
We uphold the right of individual Americans to own firearms, a right which antedated the Constitution and was solemnly confirmed by the Second Amendment. We applaud the Supreme Court’s decision in Heller affirming that right, and we assert the individual responsibility to safely use and store firearms. We call on the next president to appoint judges who will similarly respect the Constitution. Gun ownership is responsible citizenship, enabling Americans to defend themselves, their property, and communities…
We recognize that gun control only affects and penalizes law-abiding citizens, and that such proposals are ineffective at reducing violent crime.
This explains why the National Rifle Association (NRA) generally endorses more Republicans than Democrats: In the 2008 congressional elections, the NRA endorsed 163 of 178 GOP winners (91.6%) but only 57 of 257 Democrat winners (22.2%). The average Democrat grade was “D+” while the average GOP grade was “A-.” *
But while 25.9% of the 2008 NRA-endorsed winners were Democrat, this is a significant improvement from 2006, when 17.4% of the NRA-endorsed winners were Democrat. Furthermore, in 2004, 19.4% of all Democrat House incumbents received an “A” from the NRA; in 2008, this improved to 23.8%, while F-graded Democrats trended down from 65.8% in 2004 to 61.0% in 2008.
This gradual trend may indicate that Democrats are beginning to respond to the fact that gun owners are representative of the American People: A recent Christian Science Monitor article reported that there are about 150,000 members of gun control organizations in America, compared to 12 million–80 times as many–members of pro-self-defense organizations.
If this trend indicates that the Democrat party is “getting it,” then the GOP will lose a major portion of their constituent support. What if a Democrat presidential candidate honestly examined the issue and admitted the truth?
· The Supreme Court has ruled that police are not obligated to protect any specific member of the public.
· Rich people can afford private security details, gated communities, and have the contacts and influence to get carry permits.
· Law-abiding poor people are more likely to live in urban areas with higher crime rates; being armed enhances their ability to protect their families and pursue life, liberty, and happiness.
(Note: This assumes that the Democrat party truly supports its platform.)
There is evidence that the Democrat party is beginning to “get it,” in spite of what the old leadership wants. For example, the recent credit card bill contained a rider legalizing concealed carry in national parks. President Obama signed the bill without commenting on the rider, which was “viewed as a bitter disappointment for gun-control advocates.”
These types of incidents may give independent gun owners more reason to vote Democrat, or at least less reason to fear a Democrat presidency.
Meanwhile, when the GOP had the White House and Congress in the early 2000s, there was no serious attempt to dismantle Roe v. Wade. For the GOP to maintain abortion as a federal issue again shows that the GOP is not true to its professed values. Even Ron Paul agrees that, as this author noted in Part 1, abortion should be de-federalized by overturning Roe v. Wade and returning the issue to the states:
Those who cherish unborn life have become frustrated by our inability to overturn or significantly curtail Roe v. Wade. Because of this, attempts were made to fight against abortion using political convenience rather than principle. There is nothing wrong per se with fighting winnable battles, but a danger exists when political pragmatism requires the pro-life movement to surrender important moral and political principles.
Finally, the GOP fielded an unelectable presidential candidate last fall, who was graded “C” by the NRA during his 2004 Senate campaign, because:
· He supports laws that harass law-abiding gun owners.
· He co-sponsored a “campaign finance reform” law that forced the NRA to become an official media organization in order to continue practicing their First Amendment right during election season.
The GOP refuses to follow their own professed Constitutional values, resulting in diminished moderate support during the past two elections. Add to this the growing trend among Democrats to support the Second Amendment by word and deed–if not always by heart and soul–and the outcome could render the Republican party irrelevant for decades.
Previous: Gun control and the Republican Party
* NRA grades and endorsements downloaded from NRA Political Victory Fund and compiled into spreadsheet. Email request for spreadsheet.
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For in-depth analysis of tools to promote the right of self-defense, read Four Hundred Years of Gun Control: Why Isn’t It Working?, which deconstructs the gun control agenda and motivates more people to support our civil right of self-defense.
Check out other Gun Rights Examiners:
- Atlanta: Carrying a firearm openly is not illegal in Georgia
- Austin: In memoriam: Values then and now
- Boston: The Educated Patriot: Domestic Enemies: The Reconquista
- Charlotte: Armed self-defense: 'To shoot fast, you have to see fast'
- Cleveland: Remembering those who secure our freedoms
- DC: Congress joins states in making parks safe for gun carry
- Denver: On Memorial Day, honor the fallen by honoring our living service members
- Los Angeles: Gun Control: O.C. Sheriff alienates voters before election run.
- Minneapolis: A great couple of days in the Midwest
- National: A Memorial Day Remembrance
- Seattle: Philosphy 101: Is there such a thing as an 'absolute right?'
- St. Louis: This is how the BATFE keeps us safe
- Wisconsin: Gun rights advocates make progress
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- National - David Codrea
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- Oleg Volk - A Human Right
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