Word: handgun
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Though it once enjoyed the reputation of being an invincible lobbyist, the N.R.A. has recently been forced to accept legislation that it instinctively resisted at first, including laws to ban "cop killer" handgun bullets that pierce protective vests and plastic guns that could elude metal detectors at airports and public buildings. Taking stands that made it easy for opponents to paint the group as wantonly indifferent to public safety, the N.R.A. has found itself repeatedly battling police organizations, whose leaders complain that they are being outgunned by gangs and drug dealers. In 1988 it suffered its first statewide referendum loss...
...owners questioned described themselves as supporters of the N.R.A. Yet 73% approved of mandatory registration of semiautomatic weapons. Also, 87% said they would support passage of a federal law to require a seven-day waiting period and a background check for anyone wanting to buy a handgun. Those are proposals that the House will consider again in its upcoming session...
...record of $15 million in 1989. It spent $1.5 million to defeat Michael Dukakis in the 1988 presidential race, and its efforts are credited with turning a portion of the vote against him. And since 1981, when Morton Grove, Ill., became the first American town to pass a comprehensive handgun ban, the N.R.A. has persuaded 38 states to pass pre-emptive laws that prohibit similar actions by local communities...
...bill to ban "cop killer" bullets and the 1988 battle over plastic guns. Moreover, many N.R.A. activists believe any attempt to regulate firearms is part of the "salami game": a slice-by-slice diminishing of their rights. Says N.R.A. past President Jim Reinke: "If we give in on the handgun waiting period and assault rifles, we'd lose half our membership, and six months later the antigunners will want our long guns...
Violent crime continues to rise in cities like New York and Washington even after severe firearm-control statutes were rushed into place. Criminals, understandably, have illegal ways of obtaining guns. Antigun laws -- the waiting periods, background checks, handgun bans, et al. -- only harass those who obey them. Why should an honest citizen be deprived of a firearm for sport or self-defense when, for a gangster, obtaining a gun is just a matter of showing up on the right street corner with enough money...