Politics and the AWB
With the national assault weapons ban set to expire in less than two weeks, nobody expected the gun lobby to ignore the Republican National Convention. And it didn’t.
Its leading organization, the National Rifle Association, has sponsored several receptions this week. Wednesday night it co-sponsored a bash for House Speaker Dennis Hastert, who could either help or hinder efforts to extend the ban. The bash featured Isaac Hayes and Kid Rock and lasted into the wee hours.
To remind Republicans gathered here to re-nominate President Bush of its national grass-roots clout, the NRA also took out a full-page advertisement in a national publication, opposite a widely read schedule of events and parties.
In typical, bare-knuckle NRA style, there is nothing subtle about the ad. It quotes former President Bill Clinton repeatedly giving the NRA credit for delivering several key states to George W. Bush in his paper-thin victory over Al Gore in 2000. And there’s a clear warning in the final excerpt from the Clinton archives – “The fight for the assault weapons ban cost 20 members their seats in Congress,” he told the Cleveland Plain Dealer in 1995.
Four years ago, in the aftermath of the Columbine High School massacre, a raging national debate over gun control played a prominent role in the presidential race. Afterward, a frustrated Clinton said in a series of interviews that he believed it pushed as many as five swing states into Bush’s column.
The NRA has withheld its endorsement of Bush. I think if the ban does expire, they will endorse him.
