Thoughts from the Middle
What Keeps Congress from Passing Sensible Gun Legislation?
Robert James Fischer
March 2018
On February 18, 2018, ABC News “This Week” reported that since Sandy Hook, 400 people in 200 schools had been shot. As the weeks pass since the last mass shooting, the discussions continue over how to prevent these tragedies. From my point of view, the answer isn’t that complicated. While I’m a gun owner, I do not support unrestricted rights to own whatever weapons
Guns
How many guns do all of the people in the entire world own? According to a 2007 study by the Geneva Graduate Institute for International Studies, there are 650 million privately owned guns worldwide. Of that number, 270 million are owned by Americans. In other words, American own 41.5% of all guns in the world. Furthermore, there are almost 4.5million new guns purchased each year in the United States. That is equivalent to 50% of the 8 million new guns produced annually worldwide. Similar figures are reported by the U. S. Congressional Research Service. In 2009, they reported that 310 million guns are owned by Americans. Of this number 114, million were handguns, 110 million rifles, 86 million shotguns and 1.5 million assault style rifles.
The Right to Keep and Bear Arms
While I have written on the 2nd Amendment in the past, some of the information is worth repeating. First, most supporters of the unrestricted right to bear arms fail to note the opening clause, “A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State…” There is a failure to realize that our founding fathers did not intend to have an open ended right to “keep and bear” arms. Saul Cornell, Chair of the American History Department at Fordham University, recently reminded us of this historical truth. Dr. Cornell has been researching gun regulation as it relates to our founding fathers for over 20 years. His research supports the idea that the writers of our Constitution believed in the need for an armed population, but they also supported gun regulation. The following sums up the regulations of that time.
Registration
All colonies, soon to be states, enrolled their citizens in the militia. Those enrolled reported their privately owned weapons, as required for militia service. There were often fines associated for reporting to militia duty without a working, well-maintained firearm.
Public Carry
Since our colonies were part of the British Empire, the newly created states (and thus the United States) inherited English Common Law. To date, Common Law has continued to exist within many of our states. In Common Law, armed travel was restricted. It was generally only allowed when assisting justice officials. Members of the ruling class could also request exceptions. Concealed carry was not allowed. There was no general right to travel with firearms– especially concealed– at the time the 2nd Amendment was passed. Twenty years later, as hand guns became more readily available, some states began to loosen regulations as murder rates began to increase.
Deadly Force
Common Law allowed for the use of deadly force only in the protection of the home—known as the Castle doctrine. Common law set a standard of retreat. Deadly force was justified ONLY when there was no other alternative. There was NO “stand your ground!”
Safe Storage
In our nation’s early years, there were laws which prohibited the storage of loaded firearms in any domestic dwelling within a city. This was a practical law, since the black powder used in these firearms is corrosive, as well as explosive in the event of a fire.
Protection from Tyranny
While there is some truth to the idea that the 2nd Amendment implied a concern over governmental tyranny, the facts indicate that the tyranny was considered to be external. We had just defeated one of the most powerful nations in the world. In addition, we also had other powerful nations as neighbors, including Spain and France. The truth is that we needed an armed militia to protect us from these external threats, not our citizens. Because there were still British loyalists among the population, our Founding Fathers asked those who were part of the militia to swear a loyalty oath. If the citizen refused, their firearm was confiscated. The Constitution defines taking up arms against the government as treason!
The NRA
A Brief History
The organization was founded in 1871 by William Church, editor of the Army and Navy Journal, and Captain George Wingate, a Civil War officer. Union General Ambrose Burnside was elected as its first President. The organization was founded to improve marksmanship training in the United States. To further its goals, the NRA opened its own firearms range and published a marksmanship manual. It also organized amateur rifle clubs. Several other distinguished Generals have served as President, including Ulysses S. Grant and Philip Sheridan.
In 1934, the organization supported the National Firearms Act, the first federal gun-control legislation passed by the United States. NRA President, Karl Frederick, testified, “I have never believed in the general practice of carrying weapons. I seldom carry one. .. I do not believe in the general promiscuous toting of guns. I think it should be sharply restricted and only under licenses.” Thirty-two years later, the NRA also supported the 1968 Gun Control Act (GCA), creating federal licensing of gun dealers and restricting certain classes of firearms.
The group continued to focus on sportsmen, hunters and marksmen. As a very young man, I remember the American Rifleman, and hunting courses sponsored by the group. The NRA was considered by most gun owners as representative of our interests.
The Modern NRA
In 1975, a number of NRA gun rights activists, who had been upset by the GCA language restricting classes of firearms, started a campaign to “take over” the organization. They were ultimately successful. What became known as the Cincinnati Revolution of 1977 changed the leadership of the organization and its mission. From that point forward, the NRA has focused on political issues with the goal of weakening the GCA. In 1986 the NRA was successful in getting Congress to pass the Firearm Owners Protection Act (FOPA). This legislation established protection of firearms owners from confiscation of their firearms. The group has also sought to limit the powers of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATFJ). For example, they have opposed ATF’s efforts to trace guns to owners electronically. In 1994, the group failed to stop the passage of the Federal Assault Weapons Ban (AWB). However, they blocked its renewal in 2004. In 2005, the group successfully pushed the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act which prevents firearms manufacturers and dealers from liability suits when their guns are used in a crime. They have also been active in fighting city laws restricting firearms, suing Chicago and San Francisco over their restrictive bans on firearms.
Two decades ago, Fortune magazine reported that the NRA was the most powerful lobbying organization in the United States. According to Lee Drutman of the Sunlight Foundation, in 2012, 88% of Republicans and 11% of Democrats in Congress had received NRA contributions at some point during their career. A full report on recent contributions is available from Aaron Williams, The Washington Post, www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/national/nra-donations/ . According to Williams’ study, 48 Senators (out of 100), and 283 Representative (out of 435) received direct funding from the NRA. Only 15 Democrats received funding. His figures do not include money spent by the NRA PAC in support of candidates. The New York Times reports the top ten recipients of NRA support including PAC contributions, www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/10/04/opinion/thoughts- The list includes the following: John McCain ($7,740,521), Richard Burr ($6,986,620), Roy Blunt ($4,551,146), Thom Tillis ($4,418,012), Cory Gardner ($3,879,064), Marco Rubio ($3,303,355), Joni Ernst $3,124,273), Rob Portman ($3,061,941), Todd Young ($2,896,732), and Bill Cassidy ($2,861,047).
In 2008, the NRA spent $10 million opposing the election of Barack Obama. In 2016, the NRA spent a total of $412 million for political causes. And this does not include dollars from its Political Action Committee.
The Good Side
While the issues presented in the last section are bothersome, the NRA continues to do many good things. Among them are the National Firearms Museum in Fairfax, Virginia and the National Sporting Arms Museum in Springfield, Missouri. They also continue to support many firearms safety and firing range programs. The group also maintains ties with the Boy Scouts of America and 4-H.
Who Does the NRA Represent Today?
While I supported the NRA’s objectives when I was a young man, I can no longer support its current initiatives. I’m not the only one. After Dana Loesch, NRA spokesperson, presented an NRA ad statement in July condemning our media, schools, and celebrities (and repeated this month in another ad). An NRA member and Marine Corps veteran said, “I’m looking at this and, you know, just thinking that this isn’t me, this organization which I belonged to for a number of years is coming out in such a dark, hostile and fear-provoking way. I was just, like, I’m done.”
The Board of Directors, which guides the organization, is composed of 76 members. These 75 individuals choose the president, vice president, executive vice president, secretary, and treasurer. Most nominees for the Board are vetted by a 9 member Nominating Committee. The process is not public. MSNBC has called the group “kingmakers.” Only 7% of eligible members, out of a claimed membership of 4 million, vote.
A 2017 poll conducted by the PAC, Americans for Responsible Solutions, reported that less than 40% of gun owners polled believed the NRA represented their interests. Sixty-seven percent agreed with the statement that the organization had been “overtaken by lobbyists and the interests of gun manufacturers and lost it original purpose and mission.” A 2013 study reported in the New England Journal of Medicine, reported that 84% of gun owners supported universal background-check systems for all gun sales. Seventy-four percent of NRA members also supported this system. This was not the position of the NRA organization. William Cummings of USA Today reports that the NRA is projecting an “vision of American life that encourages the NRA’s fans to see liberals… as monsters.”
My Conclusions
The NRA of my youth needs to re-establish its control over the organization. Leadership and membership need to recognize the original charter and the direction followed between 1871 and 1977, a 106 year legacy. The NRA is out of touch with the reality of gun ownership, particularly when it comes to assault style weapons.
In past posts and comments, I have discussed the disconnect between the logic that “guns don’t kill” and the deaths of thousands of people. People with guns kill! Guns of the type that are now prevalent in this country are not needed by anyone other than our military. A gun is a tool. In my mind there are 3 purposes for gun “tools” – hunting, safety, and military. Our great grandparents and grandparents knew this, and used these tools to hunt or to protect their homes. In addition, there were weapons used in war. A good shotgun is better protection in a home invasion than a semiautomatic weapon. Hunters don’t need semi-automatic weapons. In fact, most game laws do not even allow the use of automatic assault style weapons when hunting.
Gun regulation and ownership can and do exist side by side. Sensible gun laws should be enacted!! We must restrict semiautomatic, assault style weapons! Other countries have been successful in reducing deaths by gun. We can make this happen here. It is likely that the number of gun related crimes will decrease as well as the number of gun related homicides. Most Americans are not asking gun owners to give up their guns. They only want reasonable and responsible ownership with regulation.
Thoughts from the Middle by Robert J. Fischer 