New Poll Has Bad News for Gun Ban Fans

AP Photo/Lisa Marie Pane

A new poll by Marquette Law School may offer some comfort to anti-gunners, but only if they don't bother to look too deeply at the results. 

The poll found 52 percent of respondents say the Supreme Court should not rule that there's a right to possess AR-15s and other semi-automatic rifles, with 48 percent believing the Court should rule that the possession of these arms is constitutional. 

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While that constitutes a narrow majority on the side of the gun control lobby, that majority support is concentrated in just a couple of demographics.

When looking at the results by age, only voters 60 and older clearly favor upholding bans on so-called assault weapons. 64 percent of 60+ respondents agreed with that proposition, but every other demographic was either within the poll's margin of error or saw majority support for striking down these bans. 

  • 18-to-29 - 54 percent in favor of striking down gun bans
  • 30-to-44 - 57 percent in favor of striking down gun bans
  • 45-to-49 - 49 percent in favor of striking down gun bans

Now, that's not quite fair, in my opinion. Fuddism is a state of mind, not just an age thing (even if it's more common among older gun owners). 

While there's a stark difference in views on semi-auto bans among older and younger Americans, the gap between men and women is even bigger. 

Men are in favor of striking down the gun bans 59-41, while women are opposed 37-63. There's a reason why the gun control lobby's messaging is almost entirely directed (and led) by women, and it's the same reason why groups like Women for Gun Rights, A Girl and a Gun, and other women-led organizations are an existential threat to the gun control lobby. 

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Striking down "assault weapon" bans is also popular among churchgoers, including 66 percent of those who attend church once or twice a month and 62 percent of those who attend church weekly. 

Interestingly, support for the gun bans is higher among those not registered to vote (60 percent) than for those who are (49 percent).

Support for "assault weapon" bans also increases with educational levels, with majority support found only among those with bachelor's and post-graduate degrees. That seems like a pretty good example of the adage "educated doesn't necessarily mean smart) to me. 

Considering the constant media characterizations of AR-15s as "assault weapons," the weapon of choice for mass shooters, and an arm that "nobody needs," I think it's actually pretty remarkable that support and opposition to a ban on these arms is essentially even, given the poll's margin of error. 

The poll also asked several questions about the Supreme Court, not just the gun ban case it will hear later this year. Marquette Law found big support for enforcing a strict code of ethics for justices (89 percent) and for term limits (79 percent). The survey also found majority support for expanding the Court (53 percent), though that was clearly the most controversial of the three options. 

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I doubt that surveys like this will have any real impact on how the justices will rule in Viramontes, but it's still an interesting (if imperfect) snapshot of where Americans stand on the issue of "assault weapon" bans and gun control more generally. 

Editor’s Note: The radical Left will stop at nothing to enact their extreme gun control agenda and strip us of our Second Amendment rights.

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