There is a national emergency happening in the United States -- a disaster that Donald Trump and the Congress could do something about. It is the epidemic of gun violence that continues unabated.Last year, there were nearly 40,000 gun deaths (murder, suicide, accidents) in this country. And there was an average of about one mass shooting (where four or more people were shot) every day of 2018. This violence has continued this year.
It doesn't have to be that way. No other country has anywhere near the gun deaths or mass shootings that the United States has each year. The right-wing tells us that more guns in the hands of more people would solve the problem. But the experience of other countries which have initiated reasonable gun laws shows us the opposite is true. The U.S. already has more guns than citizens, and more people owning and carrying guns than in any other country -- but instead of making us safer, it has just produced more gun violence and deaths.
The public knows this, and they would like something done to reduce the gun violence.
The charts above are from the new CBS News Poll -- done on February 10th and 11th of a national sample of 1,000 adults, with a margin of error of 3.8 points. It shows that 56% of Americans would like to see stricter gun laws, and they are frustrated and angry about the situation. Why? Because 75% of them know that Congress and the president will just continue to do what they have been doing -- NOTHING!
Those in Congress who have been bought off by the NRA (and the gun manufacturers they represent) will tell you they are just protecting the Constitution (specifically the Second Amendment). That's disingenuous. The public is not asking for guns to be confiscated from honest citizens. They just want reasonable and constitutional laws the control who gets guns, what kind of guns and ammunition they can get, and where they may carry those guns.
The Supreme Court has already ruled that these reasonable restrictions do not violate the Second Amendment. People known to pose a danger may be restricted from buying a gun (criminals, terrorists, the dangerously mentally ill). Weapons meant for war may be restricted from being possessed by the general public. And even an honest citizen can be restricted from carrying a gun in certain places. Those are not anti-constitutional, but just common sense -- and they would prevent much of the gun violence.
The CBS Poll isn't the only one out recently. There is also the NPR / PBS NewsHour / Marist Poll -- done between February 5th and 11th of a national sample of 880 adults, with a 3.9 point margin of error.
Some of the results of that poll are shown in the charts below.
The people want action, and if Congress refuses to act, they need to be replaced by those who will act.
