The Democratic Gun Control Has Started

[Igloodude]

"At the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, the leading gun-control advocacy group, President Paul Helmke has high hopes for the assault weapons ban — and he can list races where candidates backed by his group defeated those supported by the National Rifle Assn.

But Helmke, a former Republican mayor of Fort Wayne, Ind., acknowledged that his challenge was to convince Democrats that his cause was not "radioactive." Many Democratic strategists have come to believe that supporting gun-control laws alienates rural voters and many independents.

"Guns are a tricky issue," Helmke said. "But the elections show there's nothing to be afraid of."

And Helmke is an idiot - the elections show #1 that if you ignore your electoral base long enough, eventually they'll just stay home, but also #2 that few if any Democrats wanted to touch that "radioactive" cause during the election, and mindful that they have a tougher road to hoe in 2008, will not be eager to spend precious political capital on Helmke's crusade.