In an article about a gun control compromise worked out in Congress between the Democratic leadership and the National Rifle Association, Washington Post hack, Jonathan Weisman included this amazing factoid within:
Fight has left many lawmakers gun-shy
The NRA reacted furiously to the last major federal gun-control legislation, a 1994 ban on assault weapons, and that reaction helped sweep Democrats from control of Congress later that year. Vice President Al Gore's embrace of gun-control proposals helped secure his defeat in the presidential election of 2000, and Democratic leaders have been leery of touching the issue ever since.
Perhaps Jonathan Weisman has forgotten that Al Gore won that election by over half a million votes. What a turkey!