Democrats are trying to convince voters that they aren’t soft on crime because they are tough on gun owners.
The problem is that gun control almost always targets law-abiding citizens, not actual criminals.
Politico details the Democratic strategy of tying crime to “how easy it is to get a gun in America.” According to the outlet, Democrats see a mild boost in their crime message by focusing on gun control, though it comes nowhere near the 23-point advantage Republicans hold on crime. Democrats think they can present their gun control agenda as being tough on crime and at least peel away enough swing voters to save some Democrats in competitive races.
But the Democratic Party’s gun control proposals have little to do with crime. Those proposals target law-abiding citizens who buy guns legally and submit to background checks — something criminals aren’t exactly known to do.
According to a Department of Justice report from 2019, 91% of gun criminals acquire their weapons from the black market or from another person, obtain them at the scene of the crime, or steal them. When Democrats propose “expanded” background checks or “assault weapons” bans, they are simply raising the burden for gun owners who actually follow the law to acquire firearms. They are not cracking down on crime guns, which are obtained outside that universe of background checks.
In fact, the Democratic Party’s nonchalance toward crime extends to gun crimes. For example, Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon thinks that sentencing enhancements punishing criminals who use guns in their crimes are — wait for it — racist. The Minnesota Freedom Fund, boosted by Vice President Kamala Harris and liberal celebrities, bailed out a man who was convicted of illegal gun possession (who allegedly went on to shoot and kill someone) and another man who abducted and beat women at gunpoint.
You do not need to look far to see examples of gang members committing crimes with illegal guns after being given light prison sentences or Democrats supporting the release of criminals who shot and killed people. Pennsylvania Democratic Senate nominee John Fetterman has an especially pronounced history of setting violent criminals loose on the public. Democrats want to make it harder for you and your neighbor to own guns, but they also want to overlook gang members and other criminals using guns in violent crimes.
Democrats ignored and shrugged off concerns about crime and riots in 2020, leading to a surge in homicides in the cities they run. Democrats supported and elected soft-on-crime district attorneys who see their goal as helping release criminals, not putting them behind bars. Democrats supported defunding police departments.
This belated and very lame attempt to make gun control seem more palatable shouldn’t fool anyone — because the Democratic Party has made its stance on crime clear.
