Thursday, December 11, 2014

Major shifts: Majority of Americans now favors gun rights over controls

Major shifts are occurring in Americans' attitudes about firearms - Investors Business Daily

With the second anniversary of the Newtown school shootings this weekend, a new Pew Research Center Poll finds a majority of Americans now say it is more important to protect the right of citizens to own guns than it is to restrict gun ownership.

Additionally, a new and even larger majority of Americans believes gun ownership does more to protect personal safety than endanger it....

This month Pew found 52% said protecting gun ownership rights was more important than restricting ownership, which 46% said was more important.

That's a substantial swing in 23 months. In the immediate emotional aftermath of Newtown, President Obama and Vice President Joe Biden launched a major drive to push more gun ownership restrictions through Congress. Back then, gun control drew 51% support while gun rights drew only 45%. But the administration's plans still failed on Capitol Hill.