are gun owners single issue voters?

[pstokely]

or are they socially conservative? Dean could get the union gun owner vote in TN, MO, WA that believed the NRA propaganda

[Fixated]

1. ...

My friends own illegal firearms (we're all 17-18), including an mp5. We all mess around with them, but every one of us is liberal, if that helps at all.

[DagmarK]

2. Well, a type of single issue voter IS a gun owner........

But not all gun owners are single issue voters. If that makes sense.

TONS of people with guns will vote for candidates that might not support their gun control views.

[jpgray]

3. Most NRA members are Republican voters

But there are some individuals who would be sympathetic to Dean's ideas on this, and that will get him more consideration. There are several on this board.

[dsc]

4. Some are and some aren't

Clearly there are some socially conservative gun owners. Probably even a pretty good majority of them are. But not all. Dean can get some gun owners to vote for him. Gore lost close to 1/3 of the union vote in 2000 (and he did well). At least some of that loss was over guns. Dean can get those votes.

[DemPopulist]

6. I wouldn't bet on it

There's always at least 40% of the union vote that votes against the Democrat (see http://members.cox.net/fweil/ExitPolls7200.html), so I don't think you can make a direct correlation between the percentage that Gore got in 2000 - which tracks closely with other successful Democratic nominees - and the gun issue. Further, I think Gore was a far stronger candidate with union voters that Dean would be. Remember, organized labor got behind Gore from the beginning of the primaries so the unions had a lot vested in his success (as the NRA had with Bush), and as the campaign progressed, he began to embrace a more union-friendly, populist message. Dean is ok on labor issues but not as close to the unions as Gore and his economic message is actually less populist and more conservative, in the Paul Tsongas/Lowell Weicker/Concord Coalition sense. And the more he gets attacked as too liberal, the more he will emphasize this and sound less and less like a traditional Democrat, when what labor wants IS a traditional Democrat.

[Name removed]

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[LiberalLibra]

7. I'm a gun owner and am NOT conservative BUT AM......

....a single issue voter "ANYONE BUT BUSH". This is why I am leaning toward Dean.

[kalian]

8. Personally...no.

But I do know many folks that yes, they only vote for candidates
that promise them that they will be able to keep their guns.
Its scary but true...