Gun control policy of the Bill Clinton administration
April 25, 2023
The gun control policy of the Bill Clinton administration was the White House's domestic policy on guns during Bill Clinton's term in office as President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Gun control was a major political issue in the first half of Clinton's first term and during that time he lobbied for, and signed, two major pieces of gun control legislation, the Brady Bill and the 1994 Federal Assault Weapons Ban.
After receiving the Democratic nomination for president, Clinton campaigned against George H. W. Bush, in the fall of 1992. In the six previous elections, Republicans had garnered enormous success by labeling their opponents as "soft on crime". Democrats had not used gun control in the past as an election issue. Clinton reversed the tide by using gun control as an issue and calling Bush soft on crime for not pushing for passage of the Brady Bill or the nationwide assault weapons ban.[1] Clinton also strongly endorsed the death penalty.[2] Bush called for " Going after the criminal not the gun owner". However, on March 15, 1989, less than two months after taking office, Bush temporarily banned, by executive order, the importation of various semi-automatic "assault weapons".[3] That ban was extended a few weeks later to include additional firearms,[4] and was made permanent by Bush in July, 1989.[5] Clinton won the 1992 election with 43% of the vote.
Brady Bill
Soon after taking office, it was clear that one of the most important items on the domestic agenda for the President was to pass the Brady Bill. The bill was named after Ronald Reagan's press secretaryJames Brady, who was wounded during the attempt on Reagan's life by John Hinckley. Brady's wife, Sarah, became a gun control advocate, and sought to put restrictions on the purchasing on handguns. The bill had been introduced several times in Congress during the 1980s and early 1990s. President Bush had vetoed an earlier version of the bill after intense pressure from the National Rifle Association (NRA).[6]
The Brady Bill became personal for President Clinton. He became a political ally with Sarah Brady in her quest to get the bill passed.[6] Clinton also saw first hand what he believed was a need for the bill. When he was campaigning for Governor of Arkansas he met a hardware store owner who had sold a handgun to an unstable Vietnam vet, who had just been released from a mental hospital. The man went on a killing spree with the gun. Clinton cited this in his autobiography, as the best argument he encountered as to why the background checks in the Brady Law were needed.[6]
In February 1993 Clinton encouraged congress to pass the Brady bill, stating that he would sign it if they passed it. That same month Charles Schumer introduced the bill in the House and Howard Metzenbaum did so in the Senate.[7] Public opinion polls at the time showed a majority favored the bill. After several months of debate, the White House had put enough pressure on congress to get several Republican in both houses to support the bill.[7] Despite last-ditch efforts by pro-gun Senators and the NRA, the bill managed to pass both houses and was signed into law on November 30, 1993.[8] The law required a five-day waiting period after purchasing a handgun, and the dealer had to report the sale to the local chief law enforcement officer to run a check on the buyer. Clinton may have called the bill a "good beginning" for more gun control legislation. Many credit Clinton's skills at building coalitions and using the public stage to keep pressure on getting the bill passed.
Federal assault weapons ban
One year after signing the Brady Law, White House lobbying also played a role in the passage of the 1994 Crime Bill, which included the Public Safety and Recreational Firearms Use Protection Act, commonly known as the Federal Assault Weapons Ban. The law banned certain semi-automatic firearms with two or more specific design features, and also prohibited the manufacture of ammunition magazines that held over ten rounds.[9]
Although initially heralded as a victory for Clinton and Democrats in congress, it proved costly.[2] The bill energized the NRA and Republican base, and contributed to the Republican takeover of both houses in the 1994 mid-term elections. Many Democrats who had supported Clinton's gun control measures were ousted, including Speaker Tom Foley. Clinton acknowledged that he had hurt Democrats with his victories.[6]
Clinton continued to push further regulations of firearms in his second term, especially after the Columbine High School massacre. Little success came out of his efforts as Republicans controlled congress during this time, and a majority opposed any further gun control.[10] The House voted to overturn the assault weapons ban in 1996, but the Senate failed to take up the issue.[11]
Lasting effects
Certain aspects of the Brady Bill were ruled unconstitutional in court (Printz v. United States), and the government now uses an instant check system instead of a five-day wait, but otherwise it survived and is still in effect today. Clinton claimed that the program had stopped thousand of criminals from purchasing guns. Critics pointed out that by 1999, of the more than 23,000 cases that had been referred for prosecution by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the BATF had only arrested 56 people.[7] The assault weapons ban had a sunset clause and expired on September 13, 2004.
Executive Orders
During his term, President Clinton also used the power of executive orders to implement gun control policies. On April 6, 1998, Clinton signed an order that permanently banned the importation of more than 50 types of semiautomatic "assault weapons".[12] In 1999, White House domestic policy chief Bruce D. Reed said, "The country is tired of waiting for Congress to respond to the tragedy in Littleton. The administration is going to do every thing in its power to make progress on guns."[13] Many accused Clinton of overuse of the executive power on gun control issues.
Settlement with Smith & Wesson
In 2000, the Clinton administration reached an agreement with Smith & Wesson, to end federal and state lawsuits, in exchange for marketing and design changes by the company. Some of the items Smith & Wesson agreed to were; to sell guns with locks, to build the locks in the weapons within two years, implement smart gun technology, and take ballistic fingerprints of its guns.[14] Clinton called the deal a "major victory for America's families."[14] The NRA and other gun rights groups heavily criticized the settlement calling Smith & Wesson's actions "a sell-out",[15] with the NRA calling the agreement ""tantamount to back door blackmail".[14] Smith & Wesson's ownership changed in 2001 and the agreement fell apart after George W. Bush came to office and supported lawsuit protection for gun manufactures.[16] However, Smith & Wesson continues to sell guns with internal locks.
^. Archived from the original on 2007-10-09. Retrieved 2007-09-09.
April 25, 2023
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The gun control policy of the Bill Clinton administration was the White House s domestic policy on guns during Bill Clinton s term in office as President of the United States from 1993 to 2001 Gun control was a major political issue in the first half of Clinton s first term and during that time he lobbied for and signed two major pieces of gun control legislation the Brady Bill and the 1994 Federal Assault Weapons Ban President Clinton signs the Brady Bill Contents 1 Background 2 Brady Bill 3 Federal assault weapons ban 4 Lasting effects 5 Executive Orders 6 Settlement with Smith amp Wesson 7 See also 8 ReferencesBackground EditAfter receiving the Democratic nomination for president Clinton campaigned against George H W Bush in the fall of 1992 In the six previous elections Republicans had garnered enormous success by labeling their opponents as soft on crime Democrats had not used gun control in the past as an election issue Clinton reversed the tide by using gun control as an issue and calling Bush soft on crime for not pushing for passage of the Brady Bill or the nationwide assault weapons ban 1 Clinton also strongly endorsed the death penalty 2 Bush called for Going after the criminal not the gun owner However on March 15 1989 less than two months after taking office Bush temporarily banned by executive order the importation of various semi automatic assault weapons 3 That ban was extended a few weeks later to include additional firearms 4 and was made permanent by Bush in July 1989 5 Clinton won the 1992 election with 43 of the vote Brady Bill EditSoon after taking office it was clear that one of the most important items on the domestic agenda for the President was to pass the Brady Bill The bill was named after Ronald Reagan s press secretary James Brady who was wounded during the attempt on Reagan s life by John Hinckley Brady s wife Sarah became a gun control advocate and sought to put restrictions on the purchasing on handguns The bill had been introduced several times in Congress during the 1980s and early 1990s President Bush had vetoed an earlier version of the bill after intense pressure from the National Rifle Association NRA 6 The Brady Bill became personal for President Clinton He became a political ally with Sarah Brady in her quest to get the bill passed 6 Clinton also saw first hand what he believed was a need for the bill When he was campaigning for Governor of Arkansas he met a hardware store owner who had sold a handgun to an unstable Vietnam vet who had just been released from a mental hospital The man went on a killing spree with the gun Clinton cited this in his autobiography as the best argument he encountered as to why the background checks in the Brady Law were needed 6 In February 1993 Clinton encouraged congress to pass the Brady bill stating that he would sign it if they passed it That same month Charles Schumer introduced the bill in the House and Howard Metzenbaum did so in the Senate 7 Public opinion polls at the time showed a majority favored the bill After several months of debate the White House had put enough pressure on congress to get several Republican in both houses to support the bill 7 Despite last ditch efforts by pro gun Senators and the NRA the bill managed to pass both houses and was signed into law on November 30 1993 8 The law required a five day waiting period after purchasing a handgun and the dealer had to report the sale to the local chief law enforcement officer to run a check on the buyer Clinton may have called the bill a good beginning for more gun control legislation Many credit Clinton s skills at building coalitions and using the public stage to keep pressure on getting the bill passed Federal assault weapons ban EditOne year after signing the Brady Law White House lobbying also played a role in the passage of the 1994 Crime Bill which included the Public Safety and Recreational Firearms Use Protection Act commonly known as the Federal Assault Weapons Ban The law banned certain semi automatic firearms with two or more specific design features and also prohibited the manufacture of ammunition magazines that held over ten rounds 9 Although initially heralded as a victory for Clinton and Democrats in congress it proved costly 2 The bill energized the NRA and Republican base and contributed to the Republican takeover of both houses in the 1994 mid term elections Many Democrats who had supported Clinton s gun control measures were ousted including Speaker Tom Foley Clinton acknowledged that he had hurt Democrats with his victories 6 Clinton continued to push further regulations of firearms in his second term especially after the Columbine High School massacre Little success came out of his efforts as Republicans controlled congress during this time and a majority opposed any further gun control 10 The House voted to overturn the assault weapons ban in 1996 but the Senate failed to take up the issue 11 Lasting effects EditCertain aspects of the Brady Bill were ruled unconstitutional in court Printz v United States and the government now uses an instant check system instead of a five day wait but otherwise it survived and is still in effect today Clinton claimed that the program had stopped thousand of criminals from purchasing guns Critics pointed out that by 1999 of the more than 23 000 cases that had been referred for prosecution by the Federal Bureau of Investigation FBI the BATF had only arrested 56 people 7 The assault weapons ban had a sunset clause and expired on September 13 2004 Executive Orders EditDuring his term President Clinton also used the power of executive orders to implement gun control policies On April 6 1998 Clinton signed an order that permanently banned the importation of more than 50 types of semiautomatic assault weapons 12 In 1999 White House domestic policy chief Bruce D Reed said The country is tired of waiting for Congress to respond to the tragedy in Littleton The administration is going to do every thing in its power to make progress on guns 13 Many accused Clinton of overuse of the executive power on gun control issues Settlement with Smith amp Wesson EditIn 2000 the Clinton administration reached an agreement with Smith amp Wesson to end federal and state lawsuits in exchange for marketing and design changes by the company Some of the items Smith amp Wesson agreed to were to sell guns with locks to build the locks in the weapons within two years implement smart gun technology and take ballistic fingerprints of its guns 14 Clinton called the deal a major victory for America s families 14 The NRA and other gun rights groups heavily criticized the settlement calling Smith amp Wesson s actions a sell out 15 with the NRA calling the agreement tantamount to back door blackmail 14 Smith amp Wesson s ownership changed in 2001 and the agreement fell apart after George W Bush came to office and supported lawsuit protection for gun manufactures 16 However Smith amp Wesson continues to sell guns with internal locks See also EditBill Clinton Gun politics in the United States Clinton AdministrationReferences Edit Battle Over the Brady Bill Archived from the original on 2007 08 09 Retrieved 2007 09 09 a b Vizzard William Shots in the Dark Lanham MD Rowman amp Littlefield 2000 ISBN 0 8476 9559 X Mohr Charles 15 March 1989 U S Bans Imports of Assault Rifles in Shift by Bush The New York Times Archives Los Angeles Times 6 April 1989 Rasky Susan F 8 July 1989 Import Ban on Assault Rifles Becomes Permanent The New York Times a b c d Clinton Bill My Life New York Knopf Publishing Group 2004 ISBN 0 375 41457 6 a b c DeConde Alexander Gun Violence in America York PA Northeastern U Press 2001 ISBN 1 55553 592 5 Anderson Jack Inside the NRA Beverly Hills Penguin 1996 ISBN 0 7871 0677 1 awbansunset com At Clinton s urging House votes to get back to work on gun control March 15 2000 Senator Dianne Feinstein Assault Weapons Ban Online NewsHour Taking Aim April 6 1998 PBS Archived from the original on January 19 2014 Retrieved August 29 2017 Clinton Takes Steps to become Dictator Archived from the original on 2008 10 14 Retrieved 2007 09 09 a b c Smith amp Wesson agrees to landmark gun safety settlement March 17 2000 GOA Alert March 21 2000 Andrew Cuomo for Attorney General Archived from the original on 2007 10 09 Retrieved 2007 09 09 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Gun control policy of the Bill Clinton administration amp oldid 1151158983, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
