It appears that the Illinois State Rifle Association released some highly questionable poll results last week because top officials learned that a gun-control group was doing its own polling. The Rifle Association decided it wanted to get ahead of the curve, I'm told.
The Rifle Association claimed its poll results showed broad support in a handful of legislative districts for the right to carry a concealed weapon in Illinois, even in two African-American Chicago Senate districts. But there are serious problems about the way the questions were asked, including the fact that the phrase "concealed carry" was never even mentioned in the poll, despite a Rifle Association press release claiming it was. Concealed carry is one of the hottest issues of the spring legislative session.
The poll asked three very leading, loaded questions before getting to the carry issue. Respondents were asked if they felt safe walking around their neighborhood, if they believed local police can protect them from being "robbed or assaulted," and whether they believed they have a "right to defend yourself and your family from murderers, robbers, and rapists."
