Backfire: CBS/NYT Poll Shows Majority Opposes “Assault Weapons” Ban — For First Time Ever

Well, the most recent Gun Control Blitz has had a very, very interesting effect..... backfiring. Yesterday, the "New Republic" called for total gun ban and confiscation.

I for one am glad some of anti-gun people are just spilling it on the table. Ban All Guns!

I invite all the gun ban supporters to please speak your mind, say it loud and clear, and tell us what you really want. Continue telling the public what the real "end game" looks like.

Now, back on topic: For the first time ever, a majority opposes a so called "assault weapons" ban.

newrepublic.com...

By Phoebe Maltz Bovy
December 10, 2015

Ban guns. All guns. Get rid of guns in homes, and on the streets, and, as much as possible, on police. Ban guns! Not just gun violence. Not just certain guns. Not just already-technically-illegal guns. All of them.

Ban Guns, meanwhile, is not discriminatory in this way. It’s not about dividing society into “good” and “bad” gun owners. It’s about placing gun ownership itself in the “bad” category. It’s worth adding that the anti-gun position is ultimately about police not carrying guns, either. That could never happen, right? Well, certainly not if we keep on insisting on its impossibility.

On the pro-gun-control side of things, there’s far too much timidity. What’s needed to stop all gun violence is a vocal ban guns contingent. Getting bogged down in discussions of what’s feasible keeps what needs to happen—no more guns—from entering the realm of possibility. Public opinion needs to shift. The no-guns stance needs to be an identifiable place on the spectrum, embraced unapologetically, if it’s to be reckoned with.

hotair.com...

posted at 2:01 pm on December 11, 2015 by Ed Morrissey

Attempts by Democrats to demagogue the recent terror attack in San Bernardino to push a new ban on “assault weapons” has failed to convince Americans. In fact, it might have backfired altogether. For the first time in 20 years of polling the question, the CBS/New York Times poll finds a majority opposed to an “assault weapons” ban 44/50, even as gun control in other contexts polls more consistently with previous findings

The NYT report saves this nugget for the second-to-last paragraph in its lengthy analysis of the survey:

What has shifted notably are attitudes on gun control. Only 44 percent of Americans favor a ban on assault weapons, 19 percentage points lower than after the mass shooting in Tucson in 2011. And while 51 percent favor stricter gun control in general, that is down from 58 percent in October.

The big shift is that Americans have finally begun to tire of the “we need to ban scary looking weapons that don’t differ much from other weapons” demagoguery that Democrats have been pushing for the last few years. One might have thought that the 2014 elections would have provided some clue, but perhaps a poll in the New York Times will have a little more impact.

a reply to: infolurker

For the first time ever, a majority opposes a so called "assault weapons" ban.

Because most reasonable people understand 'assault' is a crime, not whatever someone uses to commit assault.

Might as well make assault illegal… oh, nvm.

a reply to: infolurker

I don't want to ban guns; people do have a right to defend themselves. However, I don't think everyone should have one. People will start using guns to solve all of their problems.

originally posted by: lostbook
a reply to: infolurker

People will start using guns to solve all of their problems.

Yes they will. Even South Park sees it coming!

I am pretty anti=gun but I fail to understand the logic behind much of the ban assault weapons rhetoric, are would be mass shooters really going to be deterred because their gun doesn't look cool enough?

A complete waste of time.We have had a gun ban in the UK since the Dunblane school massacre, but you know what, we still have gun crime.The pretendy little "gangsters" will find them anyway.

originally posted by: CallYourBluff
A complete waste of time.We have had a gun ban in the UK since the Dunblane school massacre, but you know what, we still have gun crime.The pretendy little "gangsters" will find them anyway.

We do still have gun crime, but we have much much much less gun crime.

a reply to: infolurker

That's because, regardless of personal political or social persuasion, folks are starting to wake up to the reality that the US government hates the constitution and wants to disarm the entire population (except for the criminals, terrorists and other government agents)....not to stop mass shootings, but to ensure there will be no recourse once they decide to go full-rogue.

As I've said before, gun control has little to do with guns and everything to do with control.

Also, once again the vocal retards calling for full banning are again ignoring the root cause of mass shootings - mental health and culture.

Also, don't compare America to any other western country that has disarmed their populations, because those countries never had a 2nd amendment and associated culture and were never the worlds only super-power so it's comparing apples to lawnmowers.

Those killed or injured during events that our government has used to steer policy, still equal an infinitesimal number when compared to non-gun related scenarios. With so many choices, why go after the Bill of Rights? Incidents that pull heart strings instill agendas. Be prepared one day to kill or injure another in order to protect those rights. The enemy might surprise you.

Tons of criminals pouring into the country, numerous "terrorist" attacks.. people losing their #, but now is the time to ban guns?

Ignorance at its finest. Maybe finally people will come to their senses and follow logic instead of emotion.

I can't say I'm surprised. I thought the antis were making a huge mistake by not only running with the gun control narrative before the facts were in, but more importantly, continuing with it once the facts started rolling in and we found out this was a terrorist attack. As I said at the time, they were painting themselves into a corner whereby they were going to have to blame the Constitutional rights of Americans for a terrorist attack, and quite honestly, that **** ain't gonna fly with most people. Along the same lines, they're also making a blatant attempt to use the gun control issue as a means to deflect attention away from national security and Islamic terrorism. Combined, they're eroding what credibility they had on the issue, as they're creating a perception that the antis' gun control talk really isn't about public safety, its more about protecting the agenda and the ideology.

To that end, I think we may actually be seeing a defining moment here in terms of public opinion on the AWB. Long term polling data has shown a slow, consistent shift away from support of the AWB over the last two decades to where only a bare majority supported it according to most polls, but I think this may be what finally pushes it over the edge, where support for the AWB may finally become a minority position in this country. The next round of polling data will give us a better idea.

Obama and is ilk are pandering to there voters, since obama has been president, 100 million guns have been sold in the usa, i understand the whole gun culture is off limits in the usa, but do people really think there coming for your guns.

Obama has less than a year left, he better start getting those guns quick.

originally posted by: dukeofjive696969
Obama and is ilk are pandering to there voters, since obama has been president, 100 million guns have been sold in the usa, i understand the whole gun culture is off limits in the usa, but do people really think there coming for your guns.

Obama has less than a year left, he better start getting those guns quick.

Yep,going to the gun store now,gonna buy a BFG 9000!

originally posted by: Sunwolf

originally posted by: dukeofjive696969
Obama and is ilk are pandering to there voters, since obama has been president, 100 million guns have been sold in the usa, i understand the whole gun culture is off limits in the usa, but do people really think there coming for your guns.

Obama has less than a year left, he better start getting those guns quick.

Yep,going to the gun store now,gonna buy a BFG 9000!

well there's the Hellsing ARMS Anti-Midian Cannon 'Harkonnen'

or its real world counterpart here:

Most reasonably intelligent people understand that gun violence has little to do with passing yet more laws inconveniencing law abiding citizens.

Cities with the strictest gun laws have some of the highest rates of gun violence. Where I am from in Chicago, there isn't a single gun store in the city limits. For all intents and purposes, guns had been practically banned yet it doesn't stop the gangbangers from shooting each other up every night with illegal firearms.

People intuitively know gun control does not work. The facts are simply not on the side of the progressives.

In Iraq, every household is permitted one AR.

So, US citizens have less rights than Iraqis?

a reply to: Edumakated
Yes especially with all those border crossings to stop people bringing guns into Chicago.

a reply to: Sublimecraft

Also, don't compare America to any other western country that has disarmed their populations, because those countries never had a 2nd amendment and associated culture and were never the worlds only super-power so it's comparing apples to lawnmowers.

Here! Here!

Now Antigunners ?

And now, we have an ABC/Washington Post poll to compare against. Guess what? Its basically the same result. The public opposes an 'Assault Weapons Ban' by a 45-53% margin. Its more evidence that, indeed, we've reached a defining point in the debate on this particular issue and that its no longer a majority position.

For gun control supporters, that's not the worst of it, either. Past polling data tended to show that younger voters are somewhat less supportive of an AWB than older ones. Its part of what's driving the trend away from gun control in the US, but it seems to be accelerating. Just how bad is it for the gun control supporters? Look at the numbers on the AWB among 18-29 year olds in this poll. By a 59-39 margin, they now oppose it...a result which is absolutely disastrous for the antis, and great news for those of us who support 2A.

a reply to: infolurker

I was just thinking. I was thinking about all the amendments the Bill of Rights has.

If someone was against the 13th Amendment, they'd be bigots, racists, and be pro-slavery.
If someone was against the 8th amendment, they'd be for cruel and unusual punishment.
If someone was against the 19th amendment, they'd be sexists and misogynists.
If someone was against the 1st amendment, they'd support theocracies and silencing of the press.

But there are people who are unafraid to be openly against the 2nd amendment. They openly state that they want to disarm us.