The issue of gun control has been the subject of many debates in Congress and the Senate. The National Rifle Association (NRA), a powerful organization against stricter gun control laws, claim that such laws violate rights guaranteed us in the second Amendment while some eighty percent of the American public support tougher gun-control laws. (Bai and Rosenberg, 1999) "Virtually every gun-control initiative since 1939 has enjoyed strong public support- only to be weakened or killed by the Congress". (Bai and Rosenberg, 1999) If 80% of America supports stricter gun-control law and our current system dictates the majority rule principal, then why are the tougher laws not in place?.
The 2nd Amendment reads, "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a Free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." This is the main point in any argument concerning the gun-control debate. The supporters of gun control claim that the right to keep and bear arms does not include automatic rifles and the one of the arguments against gun-control laws is the hype that tougher laws would only disarm the law abiding citizens. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that they found no proof that waiting periods and bans on certain weapons reduced firearm violence. (West, 2003) They also claim 4.5 million new firearms are sold each year. One of the main issues with requiring individuals to wait before being allowed to buy a firearm is that this regulation does not currently apply to gun shows, although this is being argued in Congress now. .
One of Al Gore's key stances in the presidential race was tougher gun-control laws. Many Democratic Party leaders contribute this stance in his loss of key states needed to win the 2000 Presidential election against George W. Bush. Now in 2004, many candidates are avoiding the gun-control issue.