Even mass shootings fail to break partisan gridlock on gun control

Evidence

In the Senate Judiciary Committee hearings and extensive media campaigns, the Newtown massacre became just another incident in the partisan gun fight rather than the expected turning point for bipartisan efforts to enact some sensible changes in the nation’s gun laws. Despite impassioned pleas for gun reform, this entire legislative effort became just another intractable gridlock among lawmakers, who were deeply split along party lines. The Democratic members of the committee unanimously approved a proposed set of laws for action by the entire Senate, whereas, except for one dissenter on curbing gun trafficking, the Republican members unanimously rejected every proposal. So much for common ground. — Albert Bandura, Moral Disengagement, 1316

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the partisan polarization literature from The Bias of Communication and to moral disengagement mechanisms (advantageous comparison) that Bandura details throughout.