Posted on 02/01/2013 9:03:55 PM PST by neverdem
The recent Reason-Rupe poll finds a slim majority of Americans favor allowing private ownership of assault weapons, 44 percent say Americans should be prohibited from owning these types of firearms. Support is drawn down partisan lines with 68 percent of Republicans opposing an assault weapons ban and 62 percent of Democrats in support of such a ban. Independents tend to agree with Republicans with 57 to 37 percent.
Young Americans ages 18-24 are more supportive of private ownership of assault weapons with 70 percent saying Americans should be allowed to own assault weapons; 27 percent think they should be prohibited. In fact, majorities support allowing Americans to own assault weapons among those under 54. In contrast, older Americans believe assault weapons should be prohibited by a 23-point margin 58 percent to 36 percent.
Americans more familiar with firearms are also more likely to oppose prohibiting private ownership of assault weapons. For instance, 56 percent of Americans who say they personally have a firearm support private ownership. Support increases to 79 percent among Americans who both they and another member of their household own a firearm. In contrast, among households who do not own firearms, 55 percent believe assault weapons should be prohibited.
Wording Matters
These results are particularly surprising given that other national polls find majority support for federal bans of assault weapons. Even though the Reason-Rupe poll uses the same pollster as the Pew Research Center, asked a different way, Pew finds majority support for a ban on assault style weapons 55 to 40 percent. This suggests that question wording can significantly impact what considerations are brought to mind when respondents answer questions and thus impact their responses.
The following chart compares various question wording and subsequent responses for CNN/ORC, Gallup, ABC/Washington Post, AP/GfK, Fox News, Gallup/USAToday, and the Pew Research Center polls conducted within the past month. Some, but not all, of the questions finding majority support for an assault weapons ban explicitly prime respondents to consider the potential for a ban to curb gun violence. Others solely prime considerations of limiting access. In contrast, the Reason-Rupe wording ostensibly primed considerations of both limiting and allowing access. Plausibly, when respondents considered both prohibiting and allowing an activity this additional consideration bolstered support for private ownership of assault weapons. Regardless, response variability across polls demonstrates support for an assault weapons ban is not as clear cut as some may have previously thought.
Nationwide telephone poll conducted January 17th-21st 2013 interviewed 1000 adults on both mobile (500) and landline (500) phones, with a margin of error +/- 3.8%. Columns may not add up to 100% due to rounding. Full methodology can be found here(PDF). Full poll results found here.
Emily Ekins is the director of polling for Reason Foundation where she leads the Reason-Rupe public opinion research project.
Follow Emily Ekins on twitter @emilyekins
This should rip the faces off all the MSM naysayers. Of course we will never hear about this in media. A poll that will be well hidden.
A possible in for the youth vote? Someone write this down. Kids like guns.
18-24 year olds 70% pro gun eh. NEA will be having a meeting soon to discuss what went wrong.
Of course, the entire “debate” is moot. The Constitution and Bill of Rights are explicitly on our side, despite leftist wishful thinking and interpretation to the contrary.
As a side note, so is the Declaration of Independence.
This presumes that rights belong to government to be dispensed only as government sees fit.
Is there a Peace Weapon? An un-assault weapon? A Weapon of mass goodness?
Assault is assault. I earned a black belt, I can assault most of the public as I please if I wish. Am I an assault "something"? I was also a Marine, I am a weapon that can assault (my MOS distinctly has "assault" in its title). Give me a kitchen knife or a K-Bar or even a fork, I'll assault you all day long. What about my training in demo? I can leave alllllll sorts of mean things around that you yourself would be the one to trip, who assaulted who then?
This "mean" looking guns are bad thing is just stoopid at this point. I get assaulted in the wallet daily by government before I even get a chance to fight back; yet not a peep. Isn't that what we used to call muggings?
I would submit that those folks know that "assault weapons" are fully automatic, and not the gun-controller/media's false holding of semi-automatics.
-Someone tell me again why video games are bad...
Br-cause that’s WHY young people are not so liberal on guns.
I don't own an assault weapon.
Those were tightly restricted by the National Firearms Act of 1934.
I do own a Tyranny Response Rifle.
MOLON LAVE
“44 percent say Americans should be prohibited from owning these types of firearms”
This is the part thats scary.
“A possible in for the youth vote? Someone write this down. Kids like guns.”
*
Because these “kids” play every XBOX and PS3 shoot=em up games available. They love guns. I’m more astonished the liberal gun grab movement hasn’t changed the perception. Maybe these imbecile Low Info voters works to our advantage..
And I submit that this poll is full of sh**, at least the part about the 59+ group. All the people I know in that age group(including me)grew up with guns and are all for the 2nd amendment. In fact many of them take exception to the term "allowed", we are guaranteed the right to keep and bear arms, the government does not have the right or the power to either "allow" or "disallow" our ownership and use of firearms.
I think they seriously prejudice the poll by using the expression “assault weapon”.
I’m encouraged that folks think assault weapons should be owned by individuals, but the bans being proposed want to ban repeating rifles. Fully automatic weapons are already controlled.
Do you want to ban your grandpa’s repeating rifle?
Do you want to ban it if it has a hand grip?
Do you want to ban it if it has a magazine that holds 15 rounds?
Do you want to ban it if it has a scope?
What if it’s painted a camouflage color?
I’m betting 90% would be against banning on all the above.
Perhaps they remember when it wasn't necessary to lock doors or worry about kids walking to school. Sometimes memories of how it was get in the way of understanding how it is. The 55+ group took patriotism and Constitutional rights as givens and many have not woken up to the trend to subjugate us. I say that as a 60-year-old who remembers how it was, but whose eyes have been open since the '70s and even more so through the '80s on up to present - Dad was a staunch conservative and life-long NRA member who turned me onto Rush, so I had help.
You had to think that all of this “anything goes” extreme individualism indoctrination that liberals were doing in their attempts to destroy American society were going to come back and bite them some day, when they have to tell young folks, who have heard all their lives “do your own thing” that, well, we didn’t really mean it.
I wish we could own assault weapons. I’d definitely buy a Chicago Typewriter.
“I wish we could own assault weapons. I’d definitely buy a Chicago Typewriter.”
If you live in a free state all you need is the required NFA paperwork, tax stamp and $15,000+. Please note that the price is artificially high due to the ‘86 ban on new production of transferable machine guns.
“Young Americans ages 18-24 are more supportive of private ownership of assault weapons with 70 percent saying Americans should be allowed to own assault weapons; 27 percent think they should be prohibited. In fact, majorities support allowing Americans to own assault weapons among those under 54. In contrast, older Americans believe assault weapons should be prohibited by a 23-point margin 58 percent to 36 percent.”
Surprising about the young people...good news. My fellow baby boomers appear to have still learned NOTHING!
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