Isabel Stack
29 November 2018
Professor Terry
U.S. Congress
PS 371 Final Research Paper
The United States and Norway are both countries that governments are democracies, however they are formed alternatively. The United States is a representative democracy meaning that all officials are elected into the government. On the other hand, Norway is a parliamentary democracy and constitutional monarchy. Although, each country represents democracy differently similarities also exist, such as the manner in which their committees work. However, Norway’s legislature has greater representation of parties within its parliament in comparison to the U.S. two-party system, thus questioning how the policy making process is different. Since the Norwegian and American party systems both determine outcomes within their respective legislatures, policy making in Norway appears to be more efficient due to the diverse parties and representation in government. Further, although both democracies were formed by separating from other countries, their laws and policies are not the same. A highly controversial debate in the political climate of the United States is gun control, with school shootings, terrorist attacks and consistent mass shootings, it has become a part of the daily dialogue both in America and internationally. On the other hand, Norway is not a country that reports consistently of mass shooting, but their most recent attack was the deadliest worldwide. Thus, questioning which of these vastly different countries and gun culture are the most effective in keeping citizens safe?
The Constitutions
To understand the differences that the U.S. and Norway hold with policies, knowledge of the organization of each individual government is a necessary requirement. As democracies, both countries have constitutions, however their ages are and conditions in which they were created different. After winning the American Revolutionary War the Continental Congress voted to adopt the Declaration of Independence on July 4th, 1776, thus gaining independence from the British. Then the framers went on to draft the constitution, which included the desire for a strong government and one that different to the monarchy rule the Americans had just escaped. Thus, the farmers created a system of checks and balances through a three-branch system including the legislative, judicial and executive branch. The executive branch is in charge of making laws via the president, the judicial branch is in charge of upholding the constitution through interpreting and applying the law through courts. Lastly, the legislative branch is a bicameral legislature meaning it is made up of two chambers. For the United States these are the House of Representative and the Senate, the two chambers that make up the U.S. Congress. The second amendment of the U.S. Constitution states that “a well-regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed”. This right established in 1776 has not been altered in the slightest since, but the culture around firearms and regulatory policies have.
Norway’s constitution was written by the Norwegian assembly called the “Rigsforsamlingen” on May 17th, 1814 and revised in 2014 (Elkins) making it the second oldest written constitution (Nordrum). Similar to the U.S. the constitution arose out of a war involving Sweden and Denmark. In 1813, Sweden invaded Denmark, which ruled Norway at the time, the result of the war was Denmark surrendering Norway to Sweden (Lambert 2018). However, this was unpopular to the Norwegians who therefore, wrote the constitution. Norway has a system of separation of powers between three branches as well. The legislative branch in Norway serves two key functions executing legislation and approving the national budget. Additionally, the Storting can impeach as well as call a confidence vote. All powers that the United States legislative branch hold as well. The supreme court can review the legislation and administration approved by parliament. In Norway the government controls the legislative agenda in general, but the parliament is highly involved because the lack of dominance in the government. Further, the National Courts Administration was created to keep courts independent of the other branches which receives elections from both the King-in-council and parliament. Unlike, the United States, Norway does not mention any right to guns in their constitution and therefore, their debates stand on fundamentally different logic.
Political Parties
The United States has a strong two-party system consisting of the democratic and republican parties. Although, there are smaller parties that exist like libertarians and green party these have never been dominate in the political climate (Nwazota, 2004). The republican and democratic party are both extremely strong and the endorsement from one of these parties are practically necessary for someone to win the presidency. Historically the parties have represented opinions that are polar opposite and gun control is no different. In general, republicans believe that the guns are not the problem and are hesitant to change any laws regarding them, always citing the 2nd amendment, while receiving support from organizations such as the National Rifle Association. However, democrats advocate for stricter gun laws in terms of access as well as types available for purchase. The potent divide encourages partisanship, which rears its ugly head each time a shooting happens. Then, nothing occurs because Congress ends up in gridlock, particularly if the government is divided.
Norway differs greatly from the U.S. with their parties as there are a total of seven represented in their parliament, the Storting. The parties are the Norwegian Labor Party, Progress Party, Conservative Party, Socialist Left Party, Christian Democratic Party, Center Party and Liberal Party. The labor party (Arbeiderpartiet) is the largest and strongest party. Then the progress and conservative party come in at a close second and third, the rest have representation in the parliament, but it is much smaller (Nordrum). The Storting is made up of 169 members but are broken down into two categories: constituency representatives and members at large.
The polarity that exists in the American government does not exist in the same manner in Norway mainly due to the great party diversity. With this information, learning what each party supported in terms of gun control is not so black and white as seen with the democrats and republicans in the U.S. Although, there is a left and right wing, each party represents a different part of the scale. Whilst, there is a lack of information it was found that the minority right wing proposed a ban of semi-automatic weapons in Norway (AFP).
Gun Laws in America
On October 1st, 2017 Stephen Paddock entered the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino, set himself up on the 32nd floor and proceed to shoot into a crown of 22,000 people (CNN 2018). By his actions he killed 58 innocent people, with his collection of over 20 weapons. But no federal policy change has occurred.
As mentioned previously, the 2nd amendment grants the American people the right to bear arms, but that has created devastating effects on the nation through school shootings and terrorist attacks. However, there is a long history since the ratification of the 2nd amendment, but the focus shall lie primarily on acts that control weaponry rather than taxes or other regulations. According to National Public Radio (2008) in 1968 the Gun Control Act was passed by Congress after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. In the Act stricter control over interstate commerce was called for because Lee Harvey Oswald obtained his weapon of choice through mail order (NPR 2008). Twenty years later, The Firearm Owner’s Protection Act and the Law Enforcement Officers Protection Act are approved by Congress prohibiting felons from accessing guns or supplies, such as ammunition and banning ammunition that has the ability to penetrate bulletproof vests, respectively.
Interestingly, another regulation came from an assassination attempt on a president. In 1993 the Brady Handgun Violence Act came to existence which “established the National Instant Criminal Background Check System gun dealers are to use before selling a gun” (NPR 2008). The name of the act honors the White House Press Secretary, James Brady, who during the assassination attempt on Reagan, was shot in the head. The last major act in gun legislation history is the 1994 Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act that banned “possession and import of 19 types of assault weapons” (NPR, 2008). As for gun regulation on the federal level in the United States that is the beforementioned acts are all that have been offered. However, even with these acts established the ability to possess a gun in America is not a difficult process. Many easily accessible stores sell them, such as Walmart, and a person of age can walk in, pass a background check and receive a gun. It is as simple as that.
Gun Laws in Norway
On July 22nd, 2011 Andres Behring Breivik completed the one of the biggest mass shooting by killing over 70 persons in Oslo and a nearby island (APF, 2018). Even larger, than the Las Vegas shooting in a country where guns are less regulated. However, the federal government responses varied greatly.
Although, gun laws in Norway are not included in the constitution their regulations are among the strictest in the world. According to the Firearms Act to buy a gun in Norway one must be granted permission by the police commissioner, specifically that “permission may only be given to reliable persons of sober habits who need or have other reasonable grounds for possessing firearms, and who cannot be deemed unfit to do so for any special reason” (Zeldin and Wendy 2003). For example, if a person is to list hunting as their reason for requesting a gun permit a 30-hour course plus and exam must be completed prior (Kurtz, 2018). Similarly, for sport a course and test must also be completed. However, for sports “regular attendance at gun club training over the course of six months” (Kurtz, 2018) is necessary to prove that the purpose is being fulfilled.
An additional aspect of gun ownership in Norway is storage and ammunition. To buy ammunition a permit approved by the police is also required and expires after three months (Zeldin and Wendy 2003), thus limiting the ability to buy in mass quantities and requiring semi-regular check-ups with permits. Storage must be in an approved locker and the police, with notice, can make home inspections to guarantee the safe is legal and properly installed.
In 2012 after the massacre further restriction of the 2009 Firearms Act were added to include items such reviewing the Mental Health Act and polices regarding that. Further, a review board was creating to make a report after the shooting and give recommendations. The commission came up with 31 recommendations with banning semi-automatic weapons being just one (AFP, 2018). Even in 2018, years after the deadly attack new legislation is being supported to ban semi-automatic weapons in Norway, which were weapons that Breivik used during the attacks.
Outcomes and Conclusion
Both the United States and Norway make the top ten list of number of guns per capita with the U.S. at number one with 88.8 per 100 people and Norway at number two with 31.3 per 100 people (Masters, 2017). However, the difference is much greater when analyzing the gun homicide rates. Thus, resembling the similar culture these countries share about guns. In Norway gun ownership ties directly to the love of hunting and sporting (Kurtz, 2018). Additionally, the U.S. gun ownership is about patriotism and using one’s rights. Nonetheless, both cultures have included guns in their culture. The U.S. again tops the charts with 3.54-gun homicides per 100,000 people and Norway with only 0.1 (Masters, 2017). With rates this different it begs the question how do both countries have high gun ownership levels, but only one have significant homicidal outcomes? The answer is legislative policy. The manner in which guns are accessed, stored and licensed is the big difference between the two. According to Masters (2016) some may argue that strict policy does not stop shootings citing the 2011 massacre, which is true, but it does decrease the amount greatly. According to the Washington Post (Cameron and Granados 2018) although the Norway attacks were the deadliest, 7 out of the 18 deadliest listed occurred in the United States, while only one occurred in Norway.
The interesting nature of comparing these countries is that although outcomes differ the culture surrounding the presence of guns in everyday life does not. As mentioned earlier as there are a greater number of parties in the Norwegian parliament, which creates more representation in legislation. Further there are several reading processes after a bill has reached parliament, each requiring a vote, therefore there are more voices heard. The major differences seen between the American and Norwegian democratic governments that effect gun control are the breakdown of parties and their relationships and the response through policies. When an event involving guns occurs in Norway the government responds quickly with reviewing the legislation they have present and what changes can be made to improve. While, on the other hand the United States, who experiences gun violence more frequently fails to do enough, particularly at a federal level. Based on the set up of their independent governments the function differs. The United States holds a two-party system, while Norway has seven parties. Since passing a policy in both legislatures requires majorities and agreements from multiple levels of government it is easier to pass when the parliament or congress is broken up into multiple parties.
Works Cited
AFP. “Norway Set to Ban Semi-Automatic Guns from 2021, 10 Years after Utoya Shooting.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 27 Feb. 2018, www.theguardian.com/world/2018/feb/27/norway-guns-ban-semi-automatic-law.
Jakobsen, Tor G. “Norway's Political Institutions – An Overview.” Popular Social Science, 28 May 2013, www.popularsocialscience.com/2013/05/06/norways-political-institutions-an-overview/.
Kurtz, Bradley. “Gun Ownership in Norway.” Life in Norway, 19 June 2018, www.lifeinnorway.net/gun-ownership-in-norway/.
Lambert, Tim. “A Brief History of Norway.” Local Histories, 2018, www.localhistories.org/norway.html.
Nordrum, Siv. “About the Standing Committees.” Stortinget, www.stortinget.no/en/In-English/Standing-Commitees/.
Nordrum, Siv. “The Constitution.”Stortinget, https://www.stortinget.no/en/In-English/About-the-Storting/The-Constitution/
Matthews, Dylan. “There's Roughly One Gun for Every Person in America.” Vox.com, Vox Media, 14 Nov. 2018, www.vox.com/2015/10/1/18000430/gun-ownership-rate.
Masters, Johnathan. “U.S. Gun Policy: Global Comparisons.” Council on Foreign Relations, Council on Foreign Relations, 2017, www.cfr.org/backgrounder/us-gun-policy-global-comparisons.
NPR. “U.S. Gun Laws: A History.” NPR, NPR, 26 June 2008, www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=91942478.
“Political System of Norway.” Legco, Legislative Council Secretariat, www.legco.gov.hk/research-publications/english/1314fsc49-political-system-of-norway-20140902-e.pdf.
Zeldin, and Wendy. “Firearms-Control Legislation and Policy: Norway *.” Planning D-Day (April 2003) – Library of Congress Information Bulletin, Victor, 2015, www.loc.gov/law/help/firearms-control/norway.php#Relevant.