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Gun Control

GREAT SCHOLARLY DEBATE has occurred in recent decades over whether elections have become more or less partisan affairs. Some scholars have argued that other factors, such as candidate image or issues, have replaced the long tradition of voters relying on partisan cues when casting their votes. One issue that has been a consistently salient component of political campaigns is gun control. Gun control is a highly divisive issue in American politics, and a candidate's position on gun control legislation can lead to success or failure. The two main interest groups that lobby candidates are the National Rifle Association (NRA) and the Brady Campaign. Both groups are extremely aggressive in their lobbying tactics, but the NRA has traditionally been more effective because of better government access and extensive grassroots mobilization.

The NRA in Political Campaigns

The primary tool the NRA uses when confronting campaigns and elections is its Political Action Committee (PAC), the Institute of Legislative Action (ILA). The ILA has two functions: lobbying to prevent what it deems restrictive firearm legislation at the national, state, and local levels; and mobilizing NRA members to write letters, emails, and send faxes to their representatives in order to discover the stance of that government official on firearms. The NRA and the ILA have mobilized their member base in record numbers to influence elections. The NRA claimed that, in 1994, it was able to defeat 19 of 24 congressional members on its list. Of those defeated congressional members, two were Jack Foley (speaker of the house at the time) and Tom Brooks. The NRA has also proven capable of mobilizing for presidential elections. In the 2000 elections, Arkansas and Tennessee, both considered swing states, voted for George W. Bush rather than Al Gore after heavy NRA lobbying activity. President Bill Clinton had carried both Arkansas and Tennessee during both of his presidential elections. Many, including former President Clinton, attribute the success of the Bush campaign in Arkansas to effective NRA lobbying.

The NRA lobbies most heavily in moderate states. In states that are conservative, most government officials are already members of the NRA and are sympathetic to their position. In liberal states, most government officials are against the NRA, but so are the constituents, which makes mobilizing them for the NRAs cause extremely difficult. However, in moderate states where nearly 50 percent of the population is sympathetic to the NRA, government officials who do not hold the NRAs position are attacked, and the NRA has prevented these individuals from being elected and re-elected. The NRA in recent decades has recognized politics as an important part of their mission. On behalf of their constituents, as Robert J. Spitzer reports, the NRA has dedicated over one quarter of its budget to political activity. While the NRA has been effective in political campaigns, the increased cost of being actively involved in political campaigns has drastically cut funding devoted by the NRA to traditional programs such as hunter safety and police training programs.

The Brady Campaign

The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence was created in 2001 from the interest group Handgun Control, Inc. (HCI). Robert J. Spitzer notes that HCI first made campaign contributions in the 1981 election, which totalled $75,000. That same year, the NRA contributed $1.5 million in campaign contributions. During the 1991–92 election, HCI contributed $280,000, and in 1995–96 they contributed $315,000; however, the NRA contributed $6.6 million that same year. In the 2000 election, HCI contributions increased to an impressive $4 million, but the NRAs spending still dwarfed their contributions.

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