The 2012 Democratic National Convention released its party platform and it quickly drew fire from several points of the political spectrum for its statement on the Second Amendment and firearms ownership. As we did with the corresponding Republican platform, we include it in its entirety: “Firearms. We recognize that the individual right to bear arms is an important part of the American tradition, and we will preserve Americans’ Second Amendment right to own and use firearms. We believe that the right to own firearms is subject to reasonable regulation. We understand the terrible consequences of gun violence; it serves as a reminder that life is fragile, and our time here is limited and precious. We believe in an honest, open national conversation about firearms.
We can focus on effective enforcement of existing laws, especially strengthening our background check system, and we can work together to enact commonsense improvements – like reinstating the assault weapons ban and closing the gun show loophole – so that guns do not fall into the hands of those irresponsible, law-breaking few.” For those who may have missed the Republican National Convention stance on the Second Amendment, you’ll find it here. The contrast with what you just read above will be clear and easy to see. We encourage you to read both platforms and draw your own conclusions before you #gunvote on Election Day.—courtesy National Shooting Sports Foundation
