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Past assassination attempts led to US gun reform.

But not this time

Political violence has long shaped the gun control movement, but it appears little will change from this week

In the aftermath of the assassination of John F Kennedy in 1963, the calls for stricter gun regulation came quickly.

Senator Thomas Dodd proposed new legislation five days after the president’s death.

Almost two decades later, the 1981 shooting of Ronald Reagan prompted swift demands for action, including restrictions on handguns.

And though in both instances it would take years for lawmakers to move forward, both tragedies led to meaningful reform:
bans on mail-order gun sales,
restrictions on who can purchase weapons
and federal background checks for all gun purchases.

Political violence has long shaped the US gun control movement, but it appears little will change from this week.

After the attempt on Donald Trump’s life over the weekend,
outcry over the easy access to guns in US has been relatively muted.
There are no Republicans calling for tougher laws.
There’s no national conversation about the toll of gun violence on American life.

The biggest movements for gun control in US history can be traced to specific assassinations, said Andrew McKevitt, a history professor at Louisiana Tech University and the author of
"Gun Country", which looks at America’s relationship with firearms.

“The calls for those things came in the immediate aftermath,” McKevitt said.
“These are both kind of foundational moments for gun control in the United States and yet we haven’t seen anything in that regard in the last week.”
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/jul/20/trump-assassination-attempt-gun-reform?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other