In Congress and in some states, the NRA has already found ways to expand gun rights in the months since Newtown. The group successfully won congressional approval for new rules to ease importation of firearms that contradicted what Obama requested in the January launch of his anti-violence initiative. ...WaPo

The NRA is winning this one again. The problem seems to stem from their ability to turn out their members, to make sure Congress feels pressure from individual voters. Support for the background check and the ban on assault weapons — that is to say on the part of at least half of America — the turnout just hasn’t been there. In Minnesota, for example, one Republican rep pointed to his email traffic: 2,897 emails from NRA supporters versus 5 supporters of gun control.

The NRA’s recent successes on Capitol Hill — as well as a string of victories in state legislatures across the country — demonstrate the effectiveness of the group’s strategy to overcome a post-Newtown tilt toward gun control. The organization has drafted and circulated legislation, mobilized its members and continued to put pressure on politically vulnerable lawmakers. At the same time, groups attempting to promote stricter gun- control measures have faltered. New restrictions that a couple of months ago seemed possible, even likely, such as bans on assault weapons and universal background checks on gun purchases, are now in doubt.

New restrictions that a couple of months ago seemed possible, even likely, such as bans on assault weapons and universal background checks on gun purchases, are now in doubt. ...WaPo

Cross-posted from Prairie Weather
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