Like a director yelling “action,” the horrific mass shootings in El Paso and Dayton, Ohio, last weekend cued all the same political actors to repeat all the same political lines. Conservatives offered their prayers and talked about mental health and video games; progressives decried inaction in Washington. Voters could be forgiven for assuming they have seen this play before and nothing will ever change. But this is wrong.
America’s relationship with guns is changing, and people, more than ever, want someone to “do something.” These new attitudes will transcend the red/blue divide and provide a litmus test of our political leaders’ values. Republicans increasingly understand that they are on the wrong side of history and risk political ruin in the suburbs if they do not find a way to distance themselves from perceived complacency. CONT.
Anna Greenberg & David Walker (GQR), Washington Post
Recent polls: Guns