Paul Helmke wrote an article claiming that gun control was a winning issue in this election. Someone ought to tell the candidates, because a quick check of their websites finds only one of the three lists it on their “issues” page. And that one is John McCain calling gun control a failure as a  crime fighting tool. Barack Obama’s website talks on another page about “sensible gun control” but also says that Obama “… acknowledges ‘a tradition of gun ownership in this country that can be respected,’ and says that his academic studies convinced him gun ownership ‘is an individual right and not just the right of a militia.'” A press release on Hillary Clinton’s website bashes Obama’s history of supporting harsh gun control laws. Clearly, although both democrat candidates have a history of supporting gun control, they are not eager to bring it up, and are even downplaying it, especially in their official campaign materials. So while all the candidates may support some gun control as Helmke claims, (McCain supports “closing” Sale of private property “loophole”) the it is clear that none of them appear to think that anything more than that is a winning issue.

Sebastian covers some of the Pennsylvania politics covered in the article, I defer to his greater knowledge as a local.