Gun policies and Second Amendment rights have been, and still are, a highly controversial and divisive topic. However, since Adam Lanza opened fire on Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut killing 20 students between the ages of six and seven and six faculty members, the debate over gun laws has become more incendiary. As a guest at the Maxwell School, Matt Bennett, Senior Vice President of Public Affairs and co-founder of Third Way, a Washington, D.C.-based public policy think tank, discussed gun laws pre and post Newtown Shooting and the main concerns stemming from these policies.
Before the 1960s there were no federal gun laws. As Bennet put it, “Buying a gun was the same as buying a hammer.” This all changed following the assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and President Kennedy, which led to the passing of the 1968 Gun Control Act. This law was held its place, unchanged, until 1993. This law prohibited certain groups from purchasing guns, including felons, the mentally ill, and, in later years, domestic abusers. This act also placed new restrictions on gun dealers. It required them to possess a gun license in order to sell guns and prohibited them from selling handguns to anyone under the age of twenty-one. While the Act had noble intentions, these policies were not effectively enforced due to a lack of a system of checks and balances. Many people were still able to illegally obtain and sell guns.
When Clinton ran for president this issue was addressed. While the Brady Bill was proposed in 1981 it was not passed until 1993. This Bill created a system to check and make sure people who were not supposed to possess guns did not. Furthermore, in 1998, the National Instance Check system was put into effect, requiring all gun buyers to undergo a background check before purchasing a gun. More than two million people were supposedly stopped from buying guns after this system was established. Unfortunately, the system is not perfect and there are still many out there who illegally possess guns.
While buyers must undergo a background check, the data used in these checks has been spotty, especially for people with mental illnesses. This type of information is not always put into the system quick enough or at even at all. Also, most gun shows do not require a background check or even any ID or pistol permit to purchase a gun. This problem has spilled over onto the Internet, where online sellers who are unlicensed sell their personal guns to nearly any buyer with very few barriers. According to Bennett, there are currently over 170,000 guns for sale online, 94% of which are posted by private sellers.
Lastly, Bennett discussed the crime bill passed in 1994 by Schumer and Biden that prohibited certain types of assault weapons. The bill expired in 2004 and was never renewed.
While Bennett discussed the main federal gun bills and acts, there are many more that are specific to each state. Certain types of rifles remain illegal, including automatic weapons, as well as the number of rounds in each clip (something that saved a number of children in the Newtown Shooting, for Lanza has to reload 16 times). Also, depending on the state, the difficulty and age to obtain a pistol permit varies greatly. Yet, with all these policies, there are still major issues concerning guns and whether we hold to right to have them at all. There 31,000 gun deaths (mostly suicides), 80,000 gun related injuries and 500,000 gun related crimes each year. However, those who feel gun possession should illegal do not take into account the fact that most gun owners are law abiding citizens who use their guns responsibly, a point Bennett conceded to. These gun owners are generally in favor of tighter gun laws. Furthermore, a gun is just one thing among many that qualifies as a weapon. The crimes, injuries and deaths caused by guns would most likely be carried out even if guns were illegal. The people committing these crimes usually obtained their guns illegally and those who are determined to commit suicide will usually find alternate means, whether guns are available are not.
Overall, Bennett’s address to the audience was not only informative about the history of our federal gun laws and recent events that have sparked debate, but it initiated an interesting discussion among the audience and himself that proved more enthralling than the talk itself.