Kids and Guns: Shootings now the 3rd-leading cause of death for US Children

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32. The fact is as I reported in the quote from the actual law

In '96 the GOP flexed on the CDC for having participated in "gun-control" advocacy in addition to collecting data. The CDC leadership has chosen the safe and protected path of doing nothing. They're not independent and they're not acting like leaders at all. They just get in line for their congressional handout and do as they're told.

In the 104th Congress the Senate majority of Democrats dropped from 57 to 47 and the House majority of 258 dropped to 204. This occurred as a consequence of the 1994 elections. You are free to think, speak and write as you wish but my conclusion is that the passage of the 1994 AWB contributed to that.

Named for Republican Rep. Jay Dickey of Arkansas, a self-proclaimed "point man for the NRA" on The Hill -- the Dickey amendment does not explicitly ban CDC research on gun violence. But along with the gun control line came a $2.6 million budget cut -- the exact amount that the agency had spent on firearm research the year prior -- and a quiet wariness.

As one doctor put it, "Precisely what was or was not permitted under the clause was unclear ... but no federal employee was willing to risk his or her career or the agency's funding to find out." http://abcnews.go.com/US/federal-government-study-gun-violence/story?id=50300379

So there you have it. Conviction at the CDC for more than 2 decades has run as deep as the wallet. During the 111th Congress with a Democratic Majority in both houses, why this issue did not become important enough to at least enact guidelines for the CDC concerning research on firearm effects is beyond me. Horsetrading is what politics are all about. You give some to get some. Each party has their own set of political priorities. "Gun-control" has been a political loser for Democrats since the federal AWB. We got the Brady law in the '90s with background checks, etc. That was progress. The AWB was absolutely a bridge too far and the party has been paying for it for going on a quarter century. Democratic leadership apparently did not make that CDC research an important enough issue. Maybe there were issues like healthcare that were more precious or more exigent. I'll tell you what I've read, HRC tested the waters once during the campaign on the AWB issue and never again. Politicians know for sure that for the minority party, it's all about elections. From your own party you have allegiance. From the opposition you need certain attractive qualities and a scarcity of reasons for folks to simply vote against you.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_elections,_2018

All 33 seats in Senate Class I will be up for election. 23 of the seats to be contested are presently held by Democrats, and eight by Republicans (three of which are retiring), with two being independents...All 435 voting seats in the United States House of Representatives will be up for election...In November 2017, the rate of Republican congresspeople announcing their impending retirements or resigning their seats was vastly higher than at similar time-points in the Congresses since 2006.

I look at this time, RIGHT NOW as a time to GET DEMOCRATS ELECTED. As much as it may seem disingenuous, focusing on these issues will not swing marginal voters from purple areas your way.

At this point right now that 1996 law is an excuse that Democrats can use to say, "It's the Republican's fault."

Wake up. This is the age of information. A video of athlete burping at lunch can go viral. Make some progress. Get that CDC research defined and set by law. Have an accomplishment. You think the data will point in your direction. Good. Get the data. Get some congress critters in place to pass the law to get the data.

In this time where trump has convinced most every Democrat to simply vote against any Republican, to whom are you trying to appeal for a vote? It is my bet that every Democrat will vote against every Republican. The only pivotal campaign issues will come down to those that swing Republicans to vote against trump and their own party. Auribus teneo lupum. Regardless of what you do, you have the attention of the wolf. From my perspective feeding the wolf that it might relax and sleep while we take the advantage and win elections is the course of wisdom.

If Democrats want more a 22 year old excuse, now is the time. Stop trying to kick the wolf in the balls.