While there is likely strong evidence on both sides of this debate, the curious thing is that one institution is not having any debate whatsoever: Congress.
I ran the numbers to see what the various Big Money spenders are putting into lobbying Congress on the issue.
I looked at the four main groups that work in this policy space: the pro-gun control Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence and Mayors Against Illegal Guns and the anti-gun control National Rifle Association and Gun Owners of America.
Last year, the NRA spent $2,905,000 lobbying Congress. The Brady Campaign spent $40,000. Michael Bloomberg's pro-gun-control Mayors Against Illegal Guns spent $200,000 and the anti-gun control Gun Owners of America spent $1,307,996 .
Altogether, pro-gun-control groups spent $240,000 and were outspent 17-to-1 by anti-gun-control groups, that spent $4,212,996. We've created an infographic to illustrate this discrepancy.
Again, no matter what side of this debate you fall on, you probably agree that there should at least be a debate. The lobbying dollars being spent show that one side is vastly outgunning the other (no pun intended).
