US mass shootings will see more gun law reform calls

Outlook

Three close-together mass shootings, two this month and one in July, have again brought the gun control debate into focus. The Trump administration has used executive powers to introduce restrictions on guns before now, as have other administrations, and Congress has legislated.

However, the Constitution’s Second Amendment guaranteeing the ‘right to bear arms’ fuels a powerful gun lobby and weighs against any easy path to bipartisan gun law reform. Congress is likely to introduce fresh background check measures for gun buyers and owners.

Impacts

• Gun makers face more lawsuits from members of the public affected by gun violence.
• A repeal or reform of the Second Amendment is unlikely in the medium to long term.
• There will be pushes for improved social media and telecoms monitoring to identify potential shooters.
• The extent of any reforms will be influenced by party position-taking ahead of the 2020 election.