White House Amplifies Vow to Examine
'All Options' on Gun Control

A top White House adviser this week amplified President Obama's vows to look at all options — including executive actions — regarding gun control. "As the president said at his news conference a week or so ago, he has challenged his staff to go back and scrub all of our options and see what options are available to us," Valerie Jarrett, senior advisor to President Obama, told The Hill. What reforms the administration can adopt unilaterally remains a question of great dispute. Read more from The Hill.

 

Guns Hot Topic in Democratic Presidential Debate

This week the first Democratic presidential debate was held in Las Vegas; with rare exceptions it appeared that throughout the debate the candidates were falling over themselves to show who hated the firearms and ammunition industry more. Among the anti-gun talking points discussed were universal background checks, closing the so-called "gun show loophole", a ban on modern sporting rifles, and repealing the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act. The top three front runner candidates Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders, and Martin O'Malley lead the charge for more gun control with second tier candidate Lincoln Chafee echoing their sentiments. View the anti-gun highlights of the debate here.

 

President Awarded 'Two Pinocchios'

The Washington Post, hardly a supporter of gun rights, runs an entertaining Fact Checker column that evaluates comments made by public figures and awards up to four "Pinocchios" for truthfulness. President Obama, who earlier this year received three Pinocchios for his "odd series of exaggerated gun claims," including the claim that it's easier to buy a handgun than a vegetable, earned two more last week for claiming to "know that states with the most gun laws tend to have the fewest gun deaths." Said the Post, "It's not enough to count laws to figure out the reasons why gun deaths are lower in one state than another. One would need to specifically determine whether certain laws had an effect, over time, on the gun-death rate in a state." The Pinocchio leader so far on gun-related matters is U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), who earned four for exaggerations about school shootings.

 

Export Control Reform Receives Support from Sen. Daines

In last week's Government Relations Update we highlighted NSSF's recent efforts to convince the Obama administration to move forward on Export Control Reform. Which as you know, would help to alleviate the competitive disadvantage U.S. firearms manufactures currently face in the global marketplace. NSSF has worked with several Senate and Congressional offices to send letters directly to the administration calling for the completion of Export Control Reform. Even though both the House and Senate were in recess NSSF's DC Government Relations team pushed forward and was able to secure support from U.S. Sen. Steve Daines (R-Mont.) a key Senator who sits on the Appropriations and Commerce Committees. Read his letter of support for ECR here.

 

Plaintiffs prevail in Wisconsin PLCAA Lawsuit

The Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA) has been maligned left and right by some of the 2016 presidential hopefuls for the protections it offers to firearms manufacturers and retailers who lawfully sell firearms that are later used in criminal activity. While some politicians have called for repeal of the PLCAA, a case decided this week demonstrates the PLCAA's effectiveness when plaintiffs bring suit against irresponsible retailers. This week, two Milwaukee law enforcement officers were awarded more than $5 million after a jury found a retailer liable for injuries the officers sustained after the firearm used to commit the crime against them was straw purchased from the retailer. The PLCAA works to prevent frivolous lawsuits where the circumstances do not warrant liability, but — as this case demonstrates — when liability is undeniable, the PLCAA does not prevent injured plaintiffs from prevailing.

 

Minnesota DNR Proposes Lead Ban for Wildlife Management Areas

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) announced earlier this week that it would seek comments on proposed rule changes that include a ban on the use of lead shot on wildlife management areas in the farmland zone beginning in 2018, and would also prohibit the use of lead ammunition while hunting snipe or rails. According to this recent news account by the Star Tribune, the ban would affect nearly 600,000 acres of land. Should the proposed rule be approved, this would be the second-largest statewide ban, trailing only California. While the current proposal does not include lead projectiles, such as those fired from a rifle, or even a shotgun slug, it does set a very bad precedent and creates an extremely slippery slope. NSSF strongly opposes such a ban on the use of traditional ammunition. DNR will accept written comments for at least 60 days beginning on Oct. 13. Comments can be emailed to jason.abraham@dnr.state.mn.us or mailed to: DNR Wildlife, Box 20, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, 500 Lafayette Road, St. Paul, MN 55155-4020. For more information regarding NSSF's position on traditional ammunition, click here.

 

Texas Right to Hunt and Fish Proposition on Ballot

Texas voters will have the opportunity this Nov. 3 to approve a constitutional amendment protecting the right to hunt, fish and harvest wildlife. Early voting begins Oct. 19. Proposition 6 (known as SJR 22 during the legislative session) made its way through the Texas Legislature this year, receiving greater than 90 percent of the vote in each chamber.

According to a report from the Congressional Sportsmen's Foundation with data from NSSF and the American Sportfishing Association, the Lone Star State's 1.1 million hunters and 2.2 million anglers spend $4.1 billion annually and support 65,993 jobs. Hunting and fishing are deeply rooted in Texas culture and together have a major economic impact on the state. The language on the ballot for Proposition 6 will read: "The constitutional amendment recognizing the right of the people to hunt, fish, and harvest wildlife subject to laws that promote wildlife conservation." For the full text of the proposed constitutional amendment as approved by the legislature, click here.

 

California Lt. Governor Unveils 2016 Gun Control Ballot Initiative

California Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom held a press conference this week to unveil his gun control ballot initiative likely to appear on the 2016 election ballot. Newsom, who is running for governor in 2018, likely unveiled this misguide proposal hoping to close the gap in the polls with the current gubernatorial frontrunner. Newsom's ballot initiative would ban the possession of standard capacity magazines capable of holding more than 10 rounds, requiring the owners to relinquish them to an FFL, law enforcement, or transfer the magazine out of state. Most importantly, Newsom's proposal would require ammunition purchasers undergo a background check prior to buying ammunition. Before proposing such a costly and unworkable proposal that will do nothing to make Californians safer, the lieutenant governor should have considered the failure of New York to find a way after three years of trying to implement background checks for ammunition purchases. The taxpayers would be better served using those tax dollars to put more police officers on the street instead of finding yet more ways to harass and burden law-abiding Californians from exercising their Second Amendment rights. For a full rundown of the lieutenant governor's proposal, see The Sacramento Bee news account.

 

The FBI Stats are in: Crime in the U.S. Fell Again in 2014

The FBI this month released the 2014 edition of Crime in the United States, and it revealed that the estimated number of reported violent crimes decreased 0.2 percent when compared with 2013. And the estimated number of property crimes decreased 4.3 percent from 2013 levels. While the one-year numbers may not look that dramatic, they are nonetheless important because they serve to illustrate the long-term, 20-year downward trend in crime in the United States is continuing. Read more.

 

#GUNVOTE Re-Loads Often with News of Interest to You

To help gun owners to register to vote and evaluate candidates' positions on Second Amendment and sportsmen's issues, NSSF provides #GUNVOTE, our voter education site, which we update several times a week with news of interest. Recently, we posted our first video of the 2016 campaign season, which has proven very popular.

Voting in the 2016 election is a process that culminates in going to your polling place. It begins by making sure to register, then becoming educated about the candidates running for office and discussing choices with family and friends so that they understand the importance of voting to protect America's firearms freedoms and the lawful commerce in firearms. So #GUNVOTE early and #GUNVOTE often.

 

Signing Up for NSSF PAC Made Easier for Member Companies

The NSSF Political Action Committee (NSSF PAC) works to support pro-firearms industry, pro-Second Amendment and pro-sportsmen candidates for federal office. Federal law requires a trade association PAC to obtain prior approval from its corporate members before it may send important PAC news and updates to corporate member's executives, including current political news, election information and exclusive invitations to PAC events.

Now, signing up for NSSF PAC has never been easier. Just click the link below, fill out the form, add contacts (or email us list of names) and hit submit! What are you waiting for? Help ensure our industry is heard as we approach the crucial 2016 election year. Sign up today! Online PAC Prior Consent Form.

 

Thank You to Our Latest NSSF PAC Contributors

Caucus Club ($500 or more): Joe Bartozzi

Congressional Club ($250 or more): Jeff Pressman

Industry Club (up to $249): Anne Hodgdon, John Perciballi, Joel Sys

 

Learn more about our industry's Political Action Committee: