Gun control opponents often argue that there’s no need to further restrict the rights of law-abiding citizens until the rules already on the books are enforced.

Two Justice Department reports released last month give more weight to the call to enforce current gun laws. According to the reports, gun laws are often overlooked, people who should not be able to buy guns can, and oversight of gun dealers is inadequate.

In 2002 and 2003, the Justice Department found that more than 120,000 people tried to buy a gun illegally, but only 1 percent were prosecuted. Background checks missed more than 7,000 gun buyers who should have been turned down.

We have gun laws on the books for a reason. They should be enforced. According to the Justice Department reports, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the U.S. Attorney’s office have poor communication, and there are no clear guidelines on which gun cases should be referred for prosecution.

A second report found that the ATF has failed miserably in its responsibility to inspect gun dealers. In 2002, only 4.5 percent of dealers were inspected and firearms’ licenses were rarely revoked. There are more than 100,000 licensed gun dealers in the United States, most operating without the scrutiny they deserve. Violations are often ignored, even when the evidence is overwhelming and disturbing.

Sensible gun control laws can only work when they are enforced. If ATF and the FBI know that almost 60 percent of all guns used in crime nationally come from just 1 percent of gun dealers – which they do – why are those dealers still selling guns?

Economic whammy

A triple economic whammy hit the country last week.

First, the IRS reported that the inflation-adjusted income for all Americans fell 9.2 percent between 2000 and 2002, the last year for which information is available. The IRS puts the blame on two factors. When the Internet bubble burst, big investors lost big chunks of income from stocks. Secondly, the decline in jobs and wages in manufacturing and high-tech industries took a bite out of the paychecks for large numbers of the middle class. According to the New York Times, income levels almost never fall. Instead, they have methodically risen from one year to the next. That comforting pattern disappeared, at least for two years.

Second, economic growth for April, May and June was disappointing, slowing from 4.5 percent in the first quarter of the year to 3 percent. Economists had been expecting better numbers.

And third, on Friday, the Bush administration released its projections for this year’s budget deficit: $445 billion, a new record. That tops last year’s $375 billion.

The economy has shown signs of recovery from the recession of 2001, but the message is mixed.

Huge deficits threaten the country’s long-term fiscal health, declining wages place a squeeze on consumers and fluctuations in growth show how unstable the economy has become.

Congress and the president must get serious about these issues. Reducing the red ink in the federal budget, while not sexy, is a good place to start. So far, and with a few exceptions – including Mainers Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins – our elected officials have shown themselves to be unwilling.