Polls show that there is a usual pattern following a mass shooting in the U.S.: a brief uptick in concern about gun violence, maybe a brief spike in support for tighter gun restriction. Then, as the story fades, the polls fall back to the previous level.
But, Edwards-Levy writes: "This time looks different."
A HuffPost/YouGov survey shows that this time "the numbers have continued to shift in favor of congressional action on guns. There is also a rising belief that Congress could actually take such action."
"Americans now say by a nearly two-to-one margin, 50% to 26%, that it is politically possible to pass stricter gun laws . . . a remarkable swing from less than two weeks ago, when just 38% saw it as feasible."
"The shift spans political lines and includes both those who favor such a change and those who don't." Among Clinton voters, those believing it could happen rose 13%; among Trump voters, it rose 17%.
At 65%, including a majority in each party, Americans now say it's possible to enact some kinds of new gun regulations while still maintaining our right to bear arms. This compares to the post-Las Vegas number of 53%.
Here's the striking thing. Most of these changes are due to changing attitudes among those on the right politically. Republicans now say that gun laws can be tightened without violating Second Amendment rights: in this latest poll it's 61% compared to 43% just last fall after the Las Vegas shooting.
Although this seems to be lasting longer than usual, the question is: can this momentum be sustained to the November election? The March on Washington this month should give it another good jolt, but then we have to keep it up for another eight months.
We used to say that Trump is very good at reading the mood of the electorate. This poll suggests that his recent support for gun regulations that provoked such skepticism might just be that he is reading the public reflected in this poll.
Ralph
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