This was seen in the frontline video as citizens repeatedly tried to get a stronger grip on gun control against the NRA, but failed due to the NRA blocking new gun control legislations despite the majority wanting stricter gun laws. The NRA is more powerful because their supporters are more organized and passionate than the people who wanted stricter gun control. I quote our president Obama as he said, “this is not going to change unless the people who want to prevent these kinds of mass shootings from taking place feel at least as passionate and are at least as mobilized and well-funded and organized as the NRA and the gun manufacturers are” (Gunned Down: ‘The power of the NRA). This correlates that interest groups are superior in financial resources and it is crucial for them to out strategize their rivals. Sadly, the power and greediness of a few sometimes win over the need of the majority. I personally feel as though as the years go by, the government is becoming less responsive to the citizens, which makes them less responsible for acting with the public’s interest. As seen in the documentary, the government had the power to change the laws on gun control to help protects it people, but since the government favored the interest of the minority (NRA) instead of the majority made them less likely to make a positive change in the ways gun laws needed to be handled. Interest groups have so much power because they’re well represented by lobbyists in Washington and as seen in the frontline video, when it came down to trying to pass the gun control bill if an interest group had more votes or money, it was what politicians wanted. Congress was afraid to take on the NRA because if they made any statements that suggested a stronger need to act on gun control, the NRA would pour thousands of dollars into campaigning to defeat them. The imbalance of funds indicated that American politics are concentrated on only one side of an issue and until this changes, the hopes of passing stricter gun laws will remain difficult to pass. I do not think that the government is a fair place to hear their arguments and make policy decisions because if interest groups weren’t so strong in numbers and finances, they would not have been able to achieve the success they had in ignoring gun control. For example, when congress passed the first effective gun control bill making the NRA mad, they decided in 1977 to hold a convention between hunters/sportsman against gun right activists. It was during this time that Jim Brady formed a gun control group while Bill Clinton started to crack down on banning guns from being purchased without background checks (Brady Bill). In result, the NRA benefitted during the Clinton years because of the many people favoring the radical idea of anti-gun control. Although the NRA lost the first round in eliminating this bill, they began rallying up more supporters who agreed with them that more guns made people safer to come back with a victory. The mere fact the having strength in
This was seen in the frontline video as citizens repeatedly tried to get a stronger grip on gun control against the NRA, but failed due to the NRA blocking new gun control legislations despite the majority wanting stricter gun laws. The NRA is more powerful because their supporters are more organized and passionate than the people who wanted stricter gun control. I quote our president Obama as he said, “this is not going to change unless the people who want to prevent these kinds of mass shootings from taking place feel at least as passionate and are at least as mobilized and well-funded and organized as the NRA and the gun manufacturers are” (Gunned Down: ‘The power of the NRA). This correlates that interest groups are superior in financial resources and it is crucial for them to out strategize their rivals. Sadly, the power and greediness of a few sometimes win over the need of the majority. I personally feel as though as the years go by, the government is becoming less responsive to the citizens, which makes them less responsible for acting with the public’s interest. As seen in the documentary, the government had the power to change the laws on gun control to help protects it people, but since the government favored the interest of the minority (NRA) instead of the majority made them less likely to make a positive change in the ways gun laws needed to be handled. Interest groups have so much power because they’re well represented by lobbyists in Washington and as seen in the frontline video, when it came down to trying to pass the gun control bill if an interest group had more votes or money, it was what politicians wanted. Congress was afraid to take on the NRA because if they made any statements that suggested a stronger need to act on gun control, the NRA would pour thousands of dollars into campaigning to defeat them. The imbalance of funds indicated that American politics are concentrated on only one side of an issue and until this changes, the hopes of passing stricter gun laws will remain difficult to pass. I do not think that the government is a fair place to hear their arguments and make policy decisions because if interest groups weren’t so strong in numbers and finances, they would not have been able to achieve the success they had in ignoring gun control. For example, when congress passed the first effective gun control bill making the NRA mad, they decided in 1977 to hold a convention between hunters/sportsman against gun right activists. It was during this time that Jim Brady formed a gun control group while Bill Clinton started to crack down on banning guns from being purchased without background checks (Brady Bill). In result, the NRA benefitted during the Clinton years because of the many people favoring the radical idea of anti-gun control. Although the NRA lost the first round in eliminating this bill, they began rallying up more supporters who agreed with them that more guns made people safer to come back with a victory. The mere fact the having strength in