I’m not a statistician. And I’m a little bit suspicious of a poll run by “a learning community advancing the ideals of a liberal arts education, rooted in its identity as a Franciscan and Catholic institution.” But Sienna Research Institute subscribes to the American Association of Public Opinion Research (AAPOR) Code of Professional Ethics and Practices. And they were kind enough to send me the raw data and questions for their poll. [Click here for the pdf.] So I’m going to accept their findings. Q12: “As you may have heard, New York’s Governor and Legislature recently enacted the toughest gun control law in the country. Do you support or oppose the state’s new gun law?” A clear majority of those polled gave a thumbs-up to the wildly unconstitutional SAFE Act . . .
Sixty-five percent of 1,154 New York State registered voters supported the laws, 35 percent opposed. Needless to say, the results were split along party lines. Eighty-two percent of Democrats supported the legislation vs. 33 percent of Republicans.
Q13 asks “Some have said that the state’s new gun law was passed in haste, without enough time for careful review or to gage whether or not there was public support for the new law. They point to the fact that the Governor and Legislature have already admitted that corrections to the new law need to be enacted. Supporters say the law was long overdue and was needed. Which of the following two statements comes closest to your opinion:”
Fifty-six percent chose: “The law was needed and while passed quickly was the right thing to do.”
Forty-two percent chose “The law was rushed through without adequately considering public opinion and the effect the law would have.”
Two percent had no opinion.
Given the political makeup of the states where gun rights are at risk of new civilian disarmament legislation—e.g., Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maryland, New Jersey and Rhode Island— SRI poll would tend to indicate that gun owners living in these areas are f*ked.
This despite (or because of) a Quinnipiac University poll that found NY Governor Andrew Cuomo’s post-SAFE Act favorability ratings fell from 74-13 percent approval rating in December to a 59-28 percent favorability rating in January.
In truth, if not for the United States Constitution this would be both a done deal and an irrecoverable assault on the right to keep and bear arms. That and gun owners’ ability to make themselves heard.