Americans Want Stricter Gun Laws. Why Can’t Congress Pass Any?

On Thursday a gunman entered the offices of a newspaper in Annapolis, Maryland, and opened fire, killing five people and injuring two. There have been more than 150 mass shootings in the U.S. this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive. Two Bloomberg columnists who write extensively about politics met online recently to consider the question, If most voters support stricter gun laws, then why can’t Congress pass any?

Francis Wilkinson: The easy answer is three letters: N, R and A. The harder question is why a lobby representing gun manufacturers is so influential. The usual reply is that the National Rifle Association is highly organized, and its members highly motivated, to exert maximum political pressure.