Liberals’ Wishful Thinking on Gun Politics

Maybe this time is different. But we’ve been told this time is different before. From my new Bloomberg View column:

After a massacre at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado, in April 1999, journalists thought they saw a groundswell of public support for new regulations on gun ownership.

Frank Bruni, then a reporter for the New York Times, marveled that “the earth has finally moved.” He explained that the National Rifle Association had lost clout. In the Washington Post, Roberto Suro reported that polling had shifted in favor of gun control. Cities were filing lawsuits to hold gun makers responsible for gun deaths. . . .

In the Senate, Vice President Al Gore cast a tie-breaking vote for tighter regulations, declaring it “a turning point for our country.”