Guns & Democracy Memo

The firearms industry is the load-bearing pillar of the current authoritarian coalition - not merely ideologically, but economically. Its power operates through two interlocking mechanisms:

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• The industry’s cultivation of armed extremism generates profit for gun manufacturers while providing authoritarian and anti-democracy interests with a mobilized, loyal base.
• Once in power, these interests advance a deregulatory agenda that enables more extreme products, loosens ownership standards, and further expands the market.

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This paper summarizes public reporting and thought leadership about the gun industry, democracy, and authoritarianism, including its role in strongman regimes abroad.  

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