In a Townhall.com column, Scott Rasmussen states that it is Americans’ lack of trust in the government that leads to a lack of action in passing more gun control laws. He notes that it’s been more than 45 years since a majority of citizens placed their full trust in government, so it’s no wonder that most don’t want them in control of guns and gun laws.
Rasmussen cites figures that show 20 percent of the people trust the federal government most of the time, while only 4 percent “just about always” trust it. “From their perspective,” he says, “the government already has too much power. Why would we give them more?”
When the Founding Fathers penned the Second Amendment, it was intended to limit the power of the federal government. So it’s not surprising that Americans are hesitant to turn over the reins and give government control over firearms. “It's uncomfortable because most Americans would like some kind of reasonable rules imposed, but they don't trust the government to be reasonable,” Rasmussen concludes.
