Battle Lines Have Been Drawn
July 29, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R.1808, the Assault Weapons Ban of 2022. This bill makes it a crime to “knowingly import, sell, manufacture, transfer or possess” an AR-15/MSR-style rifle or standard-capacity magazines (greater than 15 rounds).
“This legislation is as dangerous as it is revealing of the contempt that the House Democrats hold for the Constitution and the U.S. Supreme Court,” said Larry Keane, NSSF SVP and general counsel. “Democratic representatives are not fulfilling the interest of ‘the People,’ and are instead representing special-interest gun control groups that seek to disarm law-abiding citizens and scapegoat them for crimes committed by others.”
With a 217–213 vote, H.R.1808 passed on virtual party lines — five Democrats and two Republicans voted with the opposition. It now heads to an evenly divided Senate. No surprise, President Biden announced his desire to see it pass through the upper chamber quickly.
“The majority of the American people agree with this common sense action,” he said. “The Senate should move quickly to get this bill to my desk, and I will not stop fighting until it does. There can be no greater responsibility than to do all we can to ensure the safety of our families, our children, our homes, our communities and our nation.”
In the leadup to this bill’s passage, NSSF updated the industry estimate of MSRs in circulation in the U.S. to 24,446,000 since 1990 — an increase of 4.5 million rifles since the last estimate was released in 2020. To put this figure into broader context, there are more MSRs in circulation than there are Ford F-Series trucks on the road.
If this bill becomes the law of the land, the “commonly owned” aspect of these semi-auto rifles will be crucial in inevitable court appeals. In the Heller and Bruen rulings, the Supreme Court upheld commonly owned firearms are lawful for private ownership.
“Banning of an entire class of semiautomatic firearms can be viewed as nothing short of an outright infringement of Second Amendment rights — rights which belong to the people and not the government,” the NSSF said in a statement condemning the passage of H.R.1808.
House Hearing Spoke Volumes
Before H.R.1808’s passage, on July 27, House Oversight Committee Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) hosted a hearing on “Examining the Practices and Profits of Gun Manufacturers” — which sought out to vilify the industry.
Maloney’s opening statement said it all: “The gun industry has flooded our neighborhoods, our schools and even our churches and synagogues with these deadly weapons [AR-15s] — and has gotten rich doing it.”
The hearing featured the testimony of Chris Killoy, Ruger president and CEO, and Marty Daniel, founder and CEO of Daniel Defense, along with three other witnesses. Mark Smith, president and CEO of Smith & Wesson, was also invited but did not attend the hearing. (Aug. 1, Rep. Maloney followed through on a threat to issue a subpoena to Smith & Wesson after the company’s “refusal to voluntarily produce key information” on its sales of ARs/MSRs to civilians.)
“Democratic representatives are not fulfilling the interest of ‘the People,’ and are instead representing special-interest gun control groups that seek to disarm law-abiding citizens and scapegoat them for crimes committed by others.”
Larry Keane, SVP & General Counsel NSSF
During the hearing, Killoy and Daniel wielded off a number of baseless attacks from those representatives with a “D” next to their name. This hearing showcased the Left’s utter dislike of a commonly owned platform, how it’s marketed (which was labeled as “irresponsible advertising” like those in the tobacco industry decades ago and today’s opioid epidemic), “Buy Now, Pay Later” financing, the Protections of Lawful Commerce In Arms Act (PLCAA) and more.
(For additional coverage of the hearing, visit: shootingindustry.com/dealer-advantage/house-oversight-committee-hearing-speaks-volumes.)
Aug. 15, Smith & Wesson responded to accusations made by Rep. Maloney and others with a strongly worded rebuke from CEO Mark Smith. In addition, the company released a “Firearm Market Factsheet” available on its website (smith-wesson.com/sites/default/files/sw_fact_sheet.pdf).
The company stated the purpose of the report: “This report is intended to highlight our commitment to promote the responsible ownership of firearms and to dispel various myths about us and our industry.”
What’s Next?
With a split Senate, H.R.1808 has little chance of advancing to President Biden’s desk. Even mainstream outlets have admitted as such: The New York Times published a story claiming it’s “doomed in the Senate.”
However, the passage of H.R.1808 demonstrates what a Democrat-controlled Congress is capable of. Rather than zeroing in on crime, elected officials are targeting lawful gun owners.
And they’re not done yet: The Equal Access to Justice for Victims of Gun Violence Act (H.R.2814), which would repeal PLCAA, has attracted 80 cosponsors (all Democrats). As of this writing, it has not moved forward for a House vote — but a party-line vote would advance it to the Senate.
The battle lines have been drawn. Election Day is Nov. 8 — and the Second Amendment is on the ballot. Therefore, encourage employees and customers to become educated and vote.
NASGW Releases Q2 SCOPE Report
The National Association of Sporting Goods Wholesalers (NASGW) has released the 2022 Q2 SCOPE Report compiling distributor sales and inventory data from January 1, 2022 through June 30, 2022.
“The data in our SCOPE platform is becoming more and more valuable to businesses and organizations across our industry,” said Kenyon Gleason, NASGW president. “Our Q2 report is a good high-level snapshot of existing trends with some deeper analysis by Tom Hopper, NASGW senior data analyst.”
The 2022 Q2 Report marks the third report published by NASGW. Others include the 2021 Annual Report and the Q1 Report. These reports offer a regular review of current marketing conditions through distributor shipments, a level of insight previously unavailable to the industry.
“For businesses looking for a better way to understand what’s actually happening in today’s market conditions, the SCOPE quarterly reports are a great tool,” Hopper added. “The data we’re using to analyze the market is the largest data sample available across the industry and paints a realistic picture about what’s happening. The insight is invaluable.”
NASGW has published a free, basic version of the report, as well as a full version of the report (available for purchase).
For more info: nasgwscope.org/resources/purchase-quarterly-reports.
/ nasgwscope.org
NRA Foundation, NSSF Support USA Shooting
The NRA Foundation and NSSF have each recently announced new initiatives to support USA Shooting.
USA Shooting athletes won a total of six medals at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, with four captured in Olympic shotgun events.
To bolster shotgun ammunition availability for USA Shooting athletes — specifically, those training and competing in the International Skeet and Trap events — the NRA Foundation board of trustees approved a $252,000 grant for USA Shooting. This grant will provide for the purchase of ammunition that will be used by the National Team, National Development Team and National Junior Team.
“For decades The NRA Foundation has provided essential funding to benefit the shooting sports,” said Tyler Schropp, NRA Foundation executive director. “When we were approached with this opportunity, it just made sense. Thanks to our generous and committed donors, we’re able to fulfill this urgent need of America’s aspiring Olympians.”
“The last three years have posed tremendous challenges to our sport in the form of event cancellations, the postponement of the Olympics and severe supply chain constraints on ammunition,” said Buddy DuVall, USA Shooting CMO. “We’re thrilled to be partnering with the NRA Foundation to provide the very best training and competition ammunition to the shotgun team that has won 30 medals this year in World Cup competitions.”
For the month of August, NSSF launched a national fundraising campaign for USA Shooting timed in conjunction with National Shooting Sports Month.
NSSF’s “Support Future Champions” campaign established a fundraising goal of $25,000, which will be used for USA Shooting athletes as they prepare for the 2022 World Championships this fall.
“USA Shooting Team athletes have excelled on the Olympic and international stage for decades, and your support will help these standard-bearing athletes benefit from the best in training, equipment, coaching and onsite support at the 2022 World Championships,” said NSSF President and CEO Joe Bartozzi. “I encourage everyone who cares about the shooting sports to make a donation in support of USA Shooting. I know we can reach our goal of $25,000 and more!”
Editor’s Note: The “Support Future Champions” campaign was still ongoing at press time.
/ usashooting.org
/ nrafoundation.org
/ nssf.org
