There is almost no such thing as a vice-presidential moment of high drama, so when Al Gore sat up particularly straight in the Senate president's chair and called twice for the recorded vote tally, it was clear he was relishing this one. For two weeks Senate Democrats had had their Republican rivals in retreat over gun-control legislation. Gore, the presumptive nominee, was called in to deliver the final blow. A Democrat-backed measure to impose restrictions on firearm sales at gun shows had been given new momentum by news of another school shooting that morning, but when the votes were counted, the...
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