It seems for once that our major parties agree on one issue. What would that issue be? Gun control.
While many of the details of the 2nd Amendment rhetoric differ, even our polar opposite political parties agree that guns in the wrong hands can be detrimental. On Tuesday October 4th, Vice Presidential candidates Mike Pence and Tim Kaine took the stage for their first debate in the 2016 election.
Initializing the controversial question concerning the issues The United States is facing with law enforcement and race relations. Elaine Quijano brings up the Dallas Police Shooting. She said, “Do we ask too much of police officers in this country, and how specifically do you address the chief’s [David Brown] concerns [with mental health funding and putting off blame on cops]?”
Kaine addressed the chief’s concerns by discussing the issue of background checks.
“I’m a gun owner. I’m a strong 2nd amendment supporter, but I got a lot of scar tissue because when I was governor of Virginia there was a horrible shooting at Virginia Tech and we learned that through that painful situation that gaps in the background record check system should’ve been closed and it could have prevented that crime. So we’re going to work to do things like close background record checks and if we do, we won’t have the tragedies like we did. One of those killed at Virginia Tech was named Liviu Librescu. He was a 70 plus year old Romanian holocaust survivor. He had survived the holocaust, then he survived the Soviet Union take over of his country, but then he was a visiting professor at Virginia Tech and he couldn’t survive the scourge of gun violence. We can support the 2nd amendment and do things like background record checks and make it safer and that will make police safer too.”
The attention was focused on the issue of allowing individual’s with mental health concerns the ability to bare arms. He does this through the use of enthymemes. Not once in his narrative did Kaine mention that the shooter, Seung Hui Cho, had a history of mental illness. Instead he allowed the audience to make the connections.
After a lavish story of growing up with a father who served as a police officer, Mike Pence made a statement that showed his agreement with Kaine. He said, “at the risk of agreeing with you.” If one goes to Donald Drumpf’s campaign website, s/he will find a list of Drumpf’s 2nd amendment and gun control policies. Listed among them is this:
According to a Pew Research survey in July 2015, 85% of the public – including large majorities of both Republicans (79%) and Democrats (88%) – favored making private gun sales and sales at gun shows subject to background checks. There was also bipartisan support for laws to prevent people with mental illness from purchasing guns. [Pew Research, Jan. 5, 2016]
So it seems that for once, Both Democrats and Republicans see eye to eye on the issue of mental health and gun control. It will be interesting to see if this issue will be brought up in upcoming debates this year.
I find it interesting that both candidates can agree that there is a need for stronger gun control laws. The idea of background checks has been prevalent for some time now. I think both side will find it difficult to create an exact premise for what level of mental health is able to buy weapons. Often returning soldiers come back with PTSD which is considered a mental health disorder. How will each party address the concern of these soldiers and their ability to purchase weapons? Will they tell them no you cannot have a weapon at your home but your more than welcome to go back across seas and risk your life? It is going to be very difficult for each party to determine what health factors will limit gun rights, without alienating a large majority of Americans.