A SILENCE ON GUNS.

Columbine produced an outcry for gun control--but the mood in Washington has changed

FOCUS: The Push for Gun Control Loses Steam in Washington

TEACHING OBJECTIVES

To help students understand the politics of gun control, and why recent school shootings haven't provoked the same demand for stiffer antigun laws that Columbine provoked.

Discussion Questions:

* What is your position in the gun-control debate?

* Should people who commit crimes with guns receive stiffer punishment than people who commit similar crimes without using guns?

* Some people argue that if more Americans carried guns, criminals would think twice before acting. Do you agree?

* Are existing laws governing the use of guns enforced well enough?

CLASSROOM STRATEGIES

Debate I: Polls find that most Americans favor tougher gun control, yet Congress seems unwilling to pass new laws. Debate whether lawmakers should heed the opinion polls. Why hasn't Congress passed a gun-control bill since the Columbine shootings in 19997 What does this say about the influence of pro-gun lobbies such as the National Rifle Association?

Discussion: * A third of the states require adults to lock up guns. Suppose a gun owner fails to lock up a gun and a child uses it to kill someone. What punishment, if any, should the adult face? * Officials in states with tough gun laws say national laws are needed to stop people from buying guns where laws are lax and bringing them to states where laws are tougher. Would such a law infringe on states' rights to regulate guns as they like?

Second Amendment: Ask a student to read the Amendment aloud. Then write U.S. v. Milleron the board. In that May 1939 case, the U.S. Supreme Court said the "obvious purpose", of the Amendment was to "render possible the effectiveness" of state militias. (The Court also said states can enact gun-control laws--but they are not required to do so.) Does the ruling contradict the "right of the people to keep and bear arms"? Does the Amendment suggest exceptions to that right, similar to the First Amendment's libel and obscenity exceptions?

Debate II: Should gun buyers be required to obtain licenses? Should private gun-show dealers have to do background checks on buyers? Should trigger locks be mandatory?

Advocates for gun control remember well the clamor for new gun laws in the days following the massacre at Columbine High School in 1999. Democrats in Congress held almost daily news conferences calling for new gun restrictions they said might have prevented the shootings. President Clinton sent a package of tough bills to Capitol Hill. And both houses approved gun-control measures, although none of them became law.

But things have changed in the nation's capital. When Andy Williams shot 15 students in Santee, California, last month, there were almost no press conferences on Capitol Hill. Only a few Democrats called for new gun-control legislation, And even Senator Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), a leading advocate of gun control, proposed only a voluntary code of ethics for gun owners instead of new laws.

Why this muted response to the latest tragedy? One reason was the election of President George W. Bush, a longtime supporter of the National Rifle Association (NRA). As Governor of Texas, Bush, a Republican, signed legislation allowing licensed gun owners to carry concealed weapons. He also approved a bill that made it difficult for counties and cities to sue gun manufacturers. Even if Congress were to pass new gun-control legislation, few advocates think Bush would sign it.

But many Democrats have also become leery of gun control. Some of them believe that the issue put West Virginia, Arkansas, and Tennessee into Bush's column last fall--enough to give him victory. Polls show that gun control is unpopular in rural areas, and Democrats from those regions have urged party leaders to tone down their advocacy on the issue. "There is no question that there is a perception in the House that members from rural districts have a tough time with this issue," says former Maryland Congressman Michael D. Barnes, president of Handgun Control Inc.

Yet opposing gun control isn't necessarily a winner either. Last year, candidates backed by the NRA lost five of the seven Senate races where the group spent the most money. The rifle association also invested $1.7 million trying to defeat ballot initiatives in Oregon and Colorado requiring sellers at gun shows to conduct background checks on customers --yet both initiatives passed. And although the NRA worked hard to help Bush in Pennsylvania and Michigan, Vice President Al Gore, a supporter of strong gun-control laws, won both states.

On top of all that, polls continue to show that the majority of voters support gun-control laws.

Gun-control advocates say their focus this year will be to close the gun-show loophole. Federal law requires licensed gun dealers to check the backgrounds of buyers for evidence of a criminal record or mental illness. But unlicensed sellers can sell firearms at gun shows without even asking for identification.

In 1999, the Senate passed legislation closing the loophole, but it died in the House. This year, a bipartisan group in Congress is trying to develop a bill that both houses can support. President Bush has indicated that he might sign a version of the bill that would give authorities 24 hours to conduct a background check. But Democrats say a thorough check could take longer, and favor a three-day waiting period.

Gun-control advocates are also pushing for a requirement that new handguns be sold with trigger locks to prevent thieves or children from using them. Opponents say such locks are easily broken or removed.

Another bill would require all new handgun owners to obtain a photo license, much like a driver's license. Proponents say the measure would force gun owners to take periodic safety training, and make it harder for criminals to obtain firearms. Opponents say the bill would be costly and burdensome to law-abiding gun buyers.

But none of those measures would have prevented the shooting in Santee, where authorities say Williams took his father's revolver from a locked cabinet. Some gun-control advocates say more radical measures are needed, such as banning handguns--an idea with little support in Congress.

"Every time there's a shooting, people spend too much time looking for specific solutions," says Joe Sudbay of the Violence Policy Center, a gun-control group. "But in doing that, they miss the fact that there is a much broader gun-violence problem that needs to be addressed more forcefully."

JAMES DAO is a Washington correspondent for The New York Times.