Cathy Wright: Spend money on gun enforcement

Regarding your June 10 editorial “Rep. Price pushes for studies on gun violence”: Rep. David Price wants to study gun violence. Tax dollars should be spent to enforce the laws already in place and go after people committing violent crimes – criminals who break state and federal laws to steal guns, tap into the black market or get someone to break the law for them.

Gun violence is not a justification for more restrictions on freedom. In reality the number of gun-related prosecutions has declined since President Obama took office. If Price really wanted to make us safer, he’d demand that every criminal, gang-banger and drug dealer with a gun be arrested and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. The statement, “Polls show the American public supports responsible gun laws,” neglects to mention which poll. Why not reference the October Gallup poll that showed that 58 percent of Americans had a favorable view of the NRA, with the highest level of “very favorable” opinions (26 percent) since Gallup first asked this question in 1989? Even more troubling for anti-gun elites like Price, 56 percent of political moderates had a favorable view of the NRA.

Drop the politics and do the right thing – spend our tax dollars to arrest and prosecute the bad guys.

This story was originally published June 18, 2016 at 6:00 PM with the headline "Cathy Wright: Spend money on gun enforcement."