Alphecca

Anti-Gun Dems to Recast Image...Again

Seems as if every election cycle we hear the Democratic National Party talking about how they need to recast their image as not being anti-gun. Not that they ever do, or they claim they only want "sensible gun control" for "responsible citizens" or some other such inane phrase. Now that the 2006 elections are looming, here they go again. From the Boston Globe:

WASHINGTON -- The Democratic Party, long identified with gun control, is rethinking its approach to the gun debate, seeking to improve the chances of its candidates in Western states where hunters have been wary of casting votes for a party with a national reputation of being against guns.

The Democrats' effort to soften their rhetoric on gun control is similar to the party's recent efforts to recast its message on abortion, maintaining their support of abortion rights but welcoming more Democrats who favor restrictions on the procedure.

Democratic National Committee chairman Howard Dean, who had been a critic of some forms of gun control during his tenure as governor of Vermont, has urged candidates to view gun control laws as state issues, allowing those in rural states to reflect the values of hunters and others hostile to gun control, while supporting restrictions in urban areas with serious crime problems.

''On gun rights, we've allowed the Republicans to paint us in a way that just doesn't represent our values," said Damien LaVera, a Dean spokesman, noting that Republicans have repeatedly portrayed Democrats as hostile to the Western way of life.

And if the Democrats actually think gun control should be a "states' issue" then why are creepozoids such as Pelosi, Di-Fi, Schumer, Kennedy et al always trying to pass national legislation on the issue? They, along with Gore and Kerry all favored national registration and licensing and a national AWB.

Do they really think they're fooling us? Does Dean really think we're that stupid? [Well yes, he probably does -- editor]

And what the hell is a "Western Way of Life"? All of us in this country have the same problems when you consider that we all have to work -- hard -- for a living to put food on the table. We all try to raise our kids to be good citizens (well, most of us...) and struggle with the price of gas and heating oil or propane. Paying the mortgage is a bitch no matter where you live. And none of us wants to be victimized by criminals. If folks in urban areas are surrounded by more crime that is all the more reason why they need the option of carrying a gun for self-defense. Notice I said "option" and not requirement. None of us pro-2A'ers want to force ANYONE to own a gun if they don't want or are comfortable doing so.

Furthermore, since when is a love for hunting part of a "Western" lifestyle? I'd say folks in Northern New England or in the South love hunting as much as anyone so this is just more pandering by Dean and the Democrats.

The article goes on to say that the NRA has noticed a slight shift by some Democrats in supporting gun rights. Sure, because they know it's a losing issue. Frankly though, there have always been some pro-2A Democrats around. Even in Vermont you pretty much have to support the right to bear arms to be elected to state politics (too bad that doesn't carry over to the voting for national offices here).

Here's one nice quote from the article:

Democrats' ability to attract rural voters in the West is a key to their hopes in 2006. In Montana, where Democrats hope to pick up a US Senate seat next year, candidates must be pro-gun to have a chance at winning, said the state's Democratic governor, Brian Schweitzer, an avid hunter who has ''more guns than I need but not as many as I want."

''I guess I kind of believe in gun control: You control your gun, and I'll control mine," Schweitzer said.

Democrats have made some headway in elections in the Mountain West, Schweitzer noted, winning majorities in both houses of the Colorado Legislature and picking up the Montana governorship last year for the first time since 1988. But national Democrats need to understand that their Western members have a different view of guns than those who live in areas where ''teenagers are wearing their caps backward, wearing baggy pants, and are shooting at each other," said Schweitzer.

Democrats (and liberals in general) are control freaks. Unfortunately, so are a lot of Republicans (the bad "No Child Left Behind" legislation is a perfect example for them, the Defense of Marriage act is another) and that's why I consider myself an independent.

Posturing by Dean and the National Democratic Party on gun rights isn't ever going to convince me that if they come to power they won't immediately enact a new AWB and a host of other "sensible" gun control.

While ideally the Second Amendment would be respected and unfettered in all 50 states, that will probably never happen. Short of that, I'm glad that it is still a states' issue or else a congress dominated by the vast number of representatives from the populous coastal states (NY, MD, MASS, CAL) would force gun control on the other states.