Bloomberg Seeks To Question Candidates About Guns

Mayor Bloomberg is trying to force every presidential candidate to take a stand on guns.

A bipartisan coalition he co-founded with Mayor Thomas Menino of Boston, Mayors Against Illegal Guns, is asking all presidential candidates to complete a 16-question survey about restrictions on gun trace data, gun trafficking, federal enforcement of gun laws, and punishment levels for breaking gun laws.

The survey allows Mr. Bloomberg, seen as a potential presidential candidate who could jump into the race as a self-financed independent next year, to enhance his national profile and distinguish himself from other presidential candidates on gun policy.

The mayor has led a national fight against a gun law known as the Tiahrt Amendment, which restricts access to information about guns used in crimes, and has drawn the ire of the National Rifle Association as he has called for a crackdown on illegal guns.

"Every day, 30 Americans are murdered with guns — that's a Virginia Tech-sized tragedy occurring every single day in America. The majority of those murders are committed with illegal guns by criminals who under existing laws never should have had access to those weapons in the first place," the coalition, which includes more than 250 mayors, wrote in an open letter to presidential candidates. "As mayors we are on the front lines of the battle against crime and illegal guns."

The coalition asked that the completed survey be turned in by January 2, the day before the Iowa caucus. It said the results would be shared with the public and would help mayors decide which candidate to endorse for president. The organization noted that it would not be making an endorsement of its own.

Mr. Bloomberg said in a statement that the coalition is committed to respecting the rights of gun owners while cracking down on illegal guns.

"Americans deserve to hear if those who want to be president of the United States will do the same," he said. "I hope this questionnaire puts illegal guns, and criminals' easy access to them, in a prominent position in our national conversation."

Mr. Bloomberg has sued out-of-state gun dealers, accusing them of selling firearms to people they knew were likely to resell the guns to criminals. Gun dealers from South Carolina and Georgia recently countersued the mayor.

A spokesman for the NRA, Andrew Arulanandam, said the organization would not advise presidential candidates about whether to fill out the survey. The NRA featured Mr. Bloomberg on the cover of its April magazine, in which it highlighted his "illegal anti-gun tactics."

He said the mayors' coalition led by Mr. Bloomberg supports gun control and noted that the NRA, its 4 million members, and the tens of millions of gun owners and hunters in America would take a serious look at any candidate who receives the endorsement of a gun control group.

The NRA supports the Tiahrt Amendment because it says gun trace data should "remain in the hands of law enforcement and not in the hands of politicians," he said.

During a speech before the NRA in September, Mayor Giuliani said he thought the amendment was sensible.

The executive director of New Yorkers Against Gun Violence, Jacqueline Kuhls, praised the survey and said if taken seriously it could change the debate about guns in America. When guns come up on the campaign trail, she said candidates tend to be asked about the rights of gun owners and the usefulness of guns, which she says misses the point.

The question is how to "keep guns out of prohibited hands," she said. "It's important for the public to understand whether the presidential candidates are going to take an issue like gun violence seriously."

A professor of public administration at Columbia University, Steven Cohen, said gun control is an emotional issue in America that has divided urban and rural voters, adding that if Republican candidates could avoid filling out the survey, he thought they would.

"It's a tough political issue because the people who are in favor of regulating guns don't feel as intensely as the people who own guns," he said. "If you are someone who is against it, your opposition is not as strong, unless you are someone who has been a victim of crime."

The survey asks candidates if, as president, they would support the Tiahrt Amendment on gun trace data; legislation requiring states to provide the federal background check system with records of people prohibited from buying guns, and legislation to require new guns sold in America to have microstamps, so shell casings at crime scenes could be traced.

Candidates also are asked whether the maximum penalty for illegal gun trafficking crimes should be raised to 20 years from 10 years.