Summary: During a campaign appearance at Broward College only a day after the Oregon shootings, Clinton expressed her unfavorable feelings towards the NRA. Clinton specifically states that the lack of massacre prevention in our country is "sickening" and then proceeds to deliver a speech to a gymnasium full of supporters. She emphasizes the point that no person should be afraid to enter these so-called "safe" vicinities. Clinton also focuses on the fact that every time there's a mass shooting, the Republicans and the NRA say that "it's not time to talk about guns." She, however, believes that it's time to take action and protect our communities. Clinton makes it clear that she's aware of the "political mountain" she'll have to climb for calling out this issue and promises that as president, she "will never relent on this." Overall, Clinton wonders "what is wrong with us that we can't stand up to the NRA?" and suggests that we "make every politician who sides with them... look into the eyes of parents whose children have been murder and explain why they listen to gun lobbyists instead."
Questions: What is this "political mountain" that Clinton will have to climb after her attack on the NRA? How dramatic will the effect of her speech be on her campaign? Do you agree with Clinton that it's time to to talk about guns and act on the issue? And, do you have an answer to her overarching question: "what is wrong with us that we can't stand up to the NRA?"
The NRA is considered one of the most powerful lobbying groups, making them important to presidential candidates as supporters. Clinton, by speaking against the NRA, has to campaign clearly in favor of gun control, meaning that she will lose many voters who hold strong feelings for the right to guns. Her speech is polarizing because it sets her up to have a clear stance for gun control. Guns have become ingrained in American culture, and people with guns take it personally when their gun rights are being limited. I agree with Clinton that it is time to talk about guns and act on the issue in light of the multiple shootings that have occurred the past couple years. Americans have a hard time standing up to the NRA because a fraction of them do hold similar beliefs as the NRA, and politicians do not want to alienate those voters, meaning they keep a relatively neutral stance.
ReplyDeleteThe political mountain is the control the NRA has over the government and the people of this country. They can provide a lot of financial support and also cause people to lose or gain supporters. Her speech will have a huge effect because people take such strong stances on gun control, those that agree with her will definitely stand by her while those that disagree will immediately go against her. I think that a group of people or a business should not have so much control over the government. We can't stand up to them because they have too much power, but that needs to change.
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ReplyDeleteThe "political mountain" that Clinton will have to overcome is the huge group of people that are against fun control and have voting power. This will have a pretty dramatic affect on her campaign, as she explicitly excludes those who are against gun control from her voting group. I agree that it is time to talk about to guns and address this issue, however it might have been more tactically effective to wait to make such a strong stance on this issue after she might be elected president. We cannot stand up to the NRA because they have a lot of lobbying power and funding, and there is not a large enough group that can get the power and funding it needs to rival it without more popular support.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with you and Micheal to add on she should have waited until she could actually take any actions because discussion about gun control has bean going on what's past overdue is taking actions towards making safer environments
DeleteHer "political mountain" is the power of the NRA and guns in general. People of both parties are in favor of guns, and taking the gun control side will lose her many votes, unless she is able to successfully "climb" the mountain and convince them to take her side.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with her that it is time to take action and talk about gun control. It seems that every time there is a mass shooting, all the candidates (especially the really conservative ones) completely ignore the gun control aspect of it and only talk about mental illness instead. Mental health is clearly an important issue, but with stricter gun control laws, many of these shootings could have been prevented. The candidates ignore the issue of gun control because they don't want to take a side and scare away the voters that disagree with them.
The "political mountain" the Clinton addresses is the power of the NRA and guns in general. Organizations like these have become overpowering in society and it is going to be difficult to move past them. I agree with her in that we need to take a serious stance on the issue. If we continue to let issues like this slip by, they will become even more overpowering than they already are and control society. Although the second amendment gives citizens the right to bear arms, many people abuse this right and aren't using it for the reasons that the framers intended.
ReplyDeleteIn our country today, guns are out of control. Even though it is in our 2nd Am. right, the Founding Fathers probably didn't put it in our Constitution for the fact of killing civilians. The NRA is very powerful, so completely shutting it down could put America on the verge of another civil war, so Clinton's "political mountain" is going to be, how do you successfully limit gun control without taking everything away.
ReplyDeleteThe 2nd wasn't aware of the type of weapons we would have to today. When they talk of arms they talk of muskets, not assault rifles. Wayne Lafayette and all of the NRA has used fear to manipulate americans. Notice the rise in gun sales after a massacre. We need to definitely start having limitations on guns such as stricter background checks and bans on certain guns.
ReplyDeleteIn today's society we have fully incorporated the idea of guns as a social norm. We have fought day in and day out to protect our right to bear arms thus many are still undecided when it comes to this particular issue. Guns are already a part of society in itself and the NRA, being one of the strongest, if not the strongest, aganecies of the US, controld that which we hold dear. We dare not go against the one in charge for fear of consequence and incarceration regardless of the outcome when we don't go against them. We have fully taken the stance that "ignorance is bliss" and have continued to ignore that fact that guns are a serious problem and threat to the stability and general well-being of our society.
ReplyDeleteHilary Clinton being a democrat implictiley states that she is against the NRA without even offically saying so. So when she made the speech it set her up for even more Rebulicans voting for the other canidates which is already a given. The NRA has a lot of power and can make her campaign more difficult for her, but the Democratic party should be proud of her because of the amount of school shootings and her stance on this can help prevent this. If the NRA treated men buying guns as women receiving abortions and birth control the world would be a very different place.
ReplyDeleteThe political mountain Clinton faces is the amount of money flowing from businesses that profit from guns to lobbyists that are backed by huge groups like the NRA that have strong influence over congressmen. Gun violence has been accepted as a fact in society, and it is clear that gun control is not an extremely effective method of preventing it as illegal arms deals are still going on.Therefore, it is time to finally sit down and talk about new ways to deal with guns and protect those who need them. The NRA is a powerful, almost legislative force, and the fear of that is what keeps many congressmen from working against them
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