A new report from a group of self-described moderate Democrats has finally put numbers to what gun owners have known all along: the Democrat Party has marched so far left that it’s lost touch with America — and its obsession with gun control is one of the biggest reasons why.
The 59-page report, titled Deciding to Win, was published by WelcomePAC, a political outfit founded by operatives who claim they want to “depolarize” American politics by helping Democrats reconnect with the working class.
In other words, they’re trying to rescue their party from the ideological quicksand of coastal elitism — and their own data show how deep the hole has gotten.
The Party of Obama Became the Party of Beto
According to the report, the share of congressional Democrats who co-sponsored an “assault weapons ban” has more than doubled, jumping from 41% in 2013 to 88% in 2024.
The phrase “gun violence” — once buried deep in Democrat platforms — now appears near the top, right alongside climate change and racial identity.
In short, the Democrat Party that once claimed to represent working men and women has turned into a party of professional activists who believe banning your AR-15 will somehow lower gas prices or make groceries affordable again. WelcomePAC admits as much.
They say Democrats have “moved to the left on essentially every issue,” and that the issues most important to the party’s elites — climate change, abortion, and guns — aren’t the issues most important to average Americans, who rank the economy, border security, and public safety far higher.
Gun Control: The Elites’ Religion
The authors of Deciding to Win don’t mince words about the damage this has done. They say “highly educated, affluent Democrat elites” are driving the party’s priorities — not voters. Those elites have replaced lunch-pail common sense with the gospel of gun control.
They’ve spent a decade shouting about “assault weapons bans,” “universal background checks,” and “gun violence prevention” while ignoring the constitutional truth that the Second Amendment is not a suggestion. It’s a right.
Every time Democrats double down on gun bans and registration schemes, they’re not just attacking firearms — they’re attacking the independence, dignity, and self-reliance that built this country. And every time they do it, they lose more of the working-class voters who used to believe the party stood for them.
Even Their Own Strategists Are Begging Them to Stop
What’s WelcomePAC’s solution? In their words, Democrats must “focus more on issues voters do not think our party prioritizes highly enough (the economy, cost of living, border security, public safety) and focus less on issues voters think we place too much emphasis on.”
Translated: stop talking about taking away people’s guns and start talking about putting food on the table. That’s not a revelation — that’s common sense. But the fact that it has to be spelled out in a 59-page memo shows how detached the modern Democrat Party has become from reality outside of Washington, D.C. and San Francisco.
Chris McNutt, president of Texas Gun Rights, welcomed the report’s admission. “It’s refreshing to see even Democrat strategists admitting that their relentless push for gun control has been a political disaster,” McNutt said. “Texas Gun Rights welcomes the return of the pro-gun Democrat — a species that’s been extinct for far too long. The Second Amendment isn’t a partisan issue; it’s an American one.”
McNutt added that Texas Gun Rights is nonpartisan and will continue to hold all elected officials accountable — Republican, Democrat, or Independent — when they betray their oath to defend the Constitution.
The Bottom Line
WelcomePAC’s report doesn’t suddenly make Democrats pro-gun.
But it does prove that their own numbers are turning against them. The party’s fixation on “assault weapons bans” and other anti-freedom crusades has alienated the very voters it needs most — blue-collar Americans who value their rights, their safety, and their independence.
If Democrats really want to “decide to win,” they can start by deciding to stop attacking the right of the people to keep and bear arms. Until then, gun owners will keep voting — and fighting — like their freedom depends on it. Because it does.
For the GOP:
“Protect kids from the Trans”
“Teach kids about firearms safety and responsibilities”
“Bring back shooting competitions”
In a world of politicians for sale, the Democrats will only listen to the elites that fund them. Back when kings ruled the world, the king would fund historians, i.e. keep them as a retainer, as long as the histories they wrote showed the king in the most favorable light. Todays politicians are like the old historians – they need the elites to keep food on their tables (as well as the power they hold).
So will the Democrats change? Not any time soon.
Unfortunately they’ll never stop. Their strategists and their very own constituents will ask them to stop and all they’ll take away from the request is that they should keep their mouths shut as they pursue gun control.
We learned after 2024 that their only concern is messaging. Not their policies or their positions. Just the messaging. Be silent when they can, lie when they can’t because it’s not that they’re pushing unpopular nonsense it’s that you’re all just too stupid to see how their nonsense is actually good for you. Messaging.
Trump Pardons 77 Citizens Targeted By Democrats In 2020 Election Lawfare.
https://thefederalist.com/2025/11/10/trump-pardons-77-citizens-targeted-by-democrats-in-2020-election-lawfare/
The phrase “gun violence” — once buried deep in Democrat platforms — now appears near the top, right alongside climate change and racial identity.
…right alongside the other toxic issues. Identity politics has become a joke. The “climate crisis” is now akin to the boy who cried wolf. It’s a tough sell to get people concerned over a few centimeters of sea level rise when Bidenflation is at 20%, while wages are depressed and a housing shortage is exacerbated by importing more poor people than ever in the history of this country. Then Democrats had the gall to ask the working class to support the “new arrivals.”
Dems will win on their main strength: promising free stuff and promoting envy politics (hate/division).
They aren’t stopping even if they don’t talk about it. Last year here in VA Youngkin vetoed 30+ gun control bills from the Democratic legislature. With Abby Normal in charge and a larger Democratic majority in the legislature, all of those gun control bills will come true. Endless years of litigation later, most will be unconstitutional but the process is the punishment.
Unless they enlist all-new candidates with absolutely solid PRO-gun backgrounds (and I don’t mean the usual “My family has always been hunters…” crap), no one should believe them even if they DO stop pushing gun control.