Exposing the myth of the gun grab

The American right’s resistance to anything that even resembles gun control is driven by the fear that any compromise will be exploited by the left to start us down a slippery slope that will end in the full confiscation of privately owned firearms.

That’s it in a nutshell.

The fear of the gun grab has shot through the core of the gun lobby and the political right for decades. At an NRA convention in 1992, Wayne LaPierre, who had just been named the organization’s CEO, proclaimed, with ominous vocal effect, “They’re coming to get your guns!”

That claim has been widely echoed through the years, recently by Tucker Carlson, who gravely assessed the current calls for gun control as follows: “This is the beginning of a plan to confiscate and criminalize firearms in the hands of the law-abiding in this country.”

Let that marinate for a moment.

I am a conservative and a gun owner. But I harbor no fear of my gun being confiscated, and it exasperates me that so many fellow conservatives gobble up the gun-grabbing rhetoric like a kid with Skittles. What’s most perplexing is those who express their dying devotion to the Second Amendment seem to forget it’s exactly that amendment that would make a wholesale confiscation of guns illegal under our Constitution. So why all the worry? Given the Second Amendment, it’s entirely unwarranted.

And there’s even less reason for worry when you consider the historical trends.

When Wayne LaPierre issued his warning in 1992, the number of privately owned firearms in the U.S. stood at less than 200 million. Since then, it has grown to almost 400 million. Doesn’t sound like a gun grab to me.

Of course, the fear of confiscation becomes more animated whenever a Democrat is elected president. But what happens during Democratic administrations is a surge in gun ownership, not a decline.

In his book “Gunfight: My Battle Against the Industry that Radicalized America,” former firearms executive Ryan Busse writes, “Over the years and through the election cycles, the trends were clear: Gun sales tended to rise during, and in anticipation of, Democratic presidents and they tended to slump during Republican administrations.” There was such a surge in gun sales during Barack Obama’s administration that industry insiders christened him “The Best Gun Salesman in America.” Conversely, they glumly referred to Donald Trump’s term in office as “The Trump Slump.”

History doesn’t lie. The so-called “gun grabbers” have been a boon to gun ownership, not an impediment.

Anyone who has fallen prey to the gun-grab myth would have to admit the effort has failed miserably. The truth is it has not failed; the truth is the gun-grab effort has never existed.

Want more proof? Let’s take a closer look at Tucker Carlson’s claim of a “plan to confiscate and criminalize firearms … “I would challenge Carlson to answer some basic questions about this “plan.” And for this inquiry, the word “they” is prohibited. I want the names and titles of individuals and government agencies clothed with the immense power required to achieve such a plan.

1. Who devised this plan?

2. Any credible plan for an effort as massive and momentous as the confiscation of 400 million weapons would surely be in writing. Have you seen it, and will you share it with us?

3. What are the specific steps of this plan, and can you provide the details of how each step will be executed?

4. How would this plan circumvent the Second Amendment?

5. Since your urgent tone implies the plan is imminent, please advise us of its duration. If the plan is successful, exactly when will all privately owned firearms officially be declared illegal?

If Carlson can’t answer these questions (and I assure you he can’t), it proves my point. Pierce the dire rhetorical veil of the gun-grab myth and you’ll find nothing but empty air. The most cursory examination of these claims will reveal they’re as vacuous and harmless as a bubble.

I don’t have all the answers to solving America’s struggle with gun violence. When it comes to gun policy, there is a maelstrom of valid arguments and counterarguments. But if the gun lovers on my side of the aisle would disabuse themselves of the phantom fear that, at any moment, heavily armed, black-clad government agents will be walking up your driveway to come and seize your guns, maybe, just maybe, we’ll find more room for compromise.