It's not nationwide, but it's an interesting read anyway. Take Gun Control off the table. Well, at least in Missouri.
This should be a fun conversation.
Right to Keep and Bear Arms is a DKos group of second amendment supporters who have progressive and liberal values. We don't think that being a liberal means one has to be anti-gun. Some of us are extreme in our second amendment views (no licensing, no restrictions on small arms) and some of us are more moderate (licensing, restrictions on small arms.) Moderate or extreme or somewhere in between, we hold one common belief: more gun control equals lost elections. We don't want a repeat of 1994. We are an inclusive group: if you see the Second Amendment as safeguarding our right to keep and bear arms individually, then come join us in our conversation. If you are against the right to keep and bear arms, come join our conversation. We look forward to seeing you, as long as you engage in a civil discussion.
While I don't agree with certain sections of
this article, I do find a couple interesting things.
Perhaps alone, the issue of gun control has cost the Democratic Party in Missouri any chance at achieving parity with the GOP. That needs to change.
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Spending money on making gun ownership more restrictive so substantially misses the point that it rightfully makes people suspicious of the effort's true intentions. It plays into the hands of the fear-mongers. It makes it easy for the Republicans to win Missouri elections.
Missouri is firmly in the grip of the various factions of the Republican Party. I'd like to see that change. Better government comes from fair fights between two approximately balanced parties rationally debating the issues. It does not come from insisting on political orthodoxy and intolerance of dissenting ideas. But Missouri Democrats have placed themselves in a box by allowing themselves to be portrayed as the party of gun control, government control over huge sectors of the economy, and fuzzy thinking.
Indeed, it is strange the Democrats can't seize power in today's political environment. The public wants honest leadership and intelligence from their elected representatives, but what we have are legislatures bought and paid for by a few wealthy special-interest groups who siphon off government revenues for their selfish purposes. Democrats could be the party that changes that and that ensures government funds are spent wisely to solve pressing problems — such as poor roads, inadequate schools and a health care system that only protects large medical insurance companies.
I'm going to leave this without comment, for the most part. I'm more interested in the conversation at this point.
So, Democrats (sitting and prospective) in red states: should they still support gun control since it's in the Democratic party platform or should they oppose it since they'd have a better chance of being elected? If they are elected, should they then adopt the national Democratic position on gun control?