Gun background checks are on pace to break record in 2019
Background checks on gun purchases in the U.S. are climbing toward a record high this year, reflecting what the industry says is a rush by people to buy weapons in reaction to the Democratic presidential candidates’ calls for tighter restrictions. By the end of November, more than 25.4 million background checks — generally seen as a strong indicator of gun sales — had been conducted by the FBI, putting 2019 on pace to break the record of 27.5 million set in 2016, the last full year President Barack Obama was in the White House. On Black Friday alone, the FBI ran 202,465 checks. Some analysts question how accurately the background check figures translate into gun sales, since some states run checks on applications for concealed-carry permits, too, and some purchases involve multiple firearms. But the numbers remain the most reliable method of tracking the industry. In the years since President Donald Trump took office, the industry has struggled through what has been referred to as the Trump Slump, a falloff in sales that reflected little worry among gun owners about gun control efforts. But with the 2020 presidential election less than a year out and virtually every Democratic candidate offering proposals to restrict access to firearms, fears appear to be driving up sales again. “The Trump Slump is real, but the politics of guns has changed a little bit over the last year,” said Adam Winkler, a professor at the University of California, Los Angeles, School of Law and an expert on gun rights and politics. “As we’re coming up upon another presidential election, Donald Trump is vulnerable, and the Democratic presidential contenders are falling all over themselves to propose more aggressive gun reforms than their opponents.” Trump has been viewed as one of the most gun-friendly presidents in modern history and has boasted of strong support from the National Rifle Association. He has addressed every one of its annual conventions since the 2016 campaign, and the powerful gun lobby pumped about $30 million into efforts to elect him. Still, hopes of expanded gun rights under Trump’s watch haven’t materialized. Legislation that would make it easier to buy silencers stalled in Congress. In addition, Trump pushed through a ban on bump stocks, which allow semiautomatic rifles to mimic machine-gun fire. The gunman who killed 58 people in Las Vegas in 2017 in the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history used such a device. The industry has been going through one of its toughest periods, with some gunmakers, such as Remington Arms, filing for bankruptcy. More recently, Smith & Wesson’s parent company, American Outdoor Brands, announced plans to spin off its firearms unit, and Colt said it would suspend production of AR-15 rifles. Amid some high-profile mass shootings in recent years, especially the Parkland school attack in Florida that left 17 people dead, gun control advocates have gained some momentum. The crowded field of Democrats running for the White House has offered a variety of proposals to curtail gun rights. Former Texas Rep. Beto O’Rourke, whose state has seen repeated mass shootings this past year, went so far as to push for a mandatory buyback program for Arizona and Arkansas style rifles before dropping out of the race, stoking gun owners’ fears when he declared during a debate, “Hell, yes, we’re going to take your AR-15, your AK-47.” The gun industry says the figures from the National Instant Criminal Background Check System reflect the Second Amendment politics of the White House race. “Americans are choosing to invest their hard-earned dollars in their ability to exercise their rights and buy the firearms they want before gun control politicians attempt to regulate away that ability,” said Mark Oliva, spokesman for the National Shooting Sports Foundation, which represents the gun industry. Still, some experts took issue with the figures and said it is premature to declare the Trump Slump is over. “These numbers cannot be taken be taken at face value,” said Jurgen Brauer, a retired business professor and now chief economist at Small Arms Analytics, which consults on the firearms industry. Brauer said the numbers are increasingly skewed by states such as Kentucky that also run background checks when they issue or renew a permit to carry a concealed firearm. In October, for example, the state ran more than 280,000 checks through the NICS system for permits. “That number has been rising over time as increasingly states check with some frequency on their existing permits,” Brauer said. The NICS system was created after passage of the Brady Bill, which mandated background checks to buy a firearm. Convicted felons, domestic abusers and people who have been involuntarily committed to a mental institution are among those who cannot legally purchase a weapon. In 1999, the first full year the system was used, just over 9 million background checks were conducted. It was near the end of Democrat Bill Clinton’s second term and in the midst of a 10-year ban on assault rifles that expired in 2004. Background checks declined under President George W. Bush but picked up again in 2006 and have mostly risen since then, except for 2014 and 2017. In 2018, there were 26.18 million background checks. “Gunmakers are promoting the idea that you should buy these guns now because they may be banned in the future,” Winkler said. This story has been corrected to delete the number of seconds per background check on Black Friday. By Lisa Marie Pane Associated Press. Republished with the Permission of the Associated Press.
Alabama’s Congressional Democrats ready for gun control action, Republicans mum
Americans across the country are once again calling on Congress to take action on gun control following last week’s massacre in Parkland, Fla. that left 17 people dead at a high school. While Congress has yet to take action, President Donald Trump helped move the conversation forward on Monday when he offered support for a limited strengthening of federal background checks on gun purchases. “While discussions are ongoing and revisions are being considered, the president is supportive of efforts to improve the federal background check system,” confirmed White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders. Trump’s is referring to the Fix NICS Act. Introduced last year by Texas-Republican U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, the bill is aimed to “fix” the way in which existing background checks can prevent firearm purchases by those who present possible red flags to state and local authorities. The legislation would ensure that federal and state authorities comply with existing law and accurately report relevant criminal history records to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). The bill also penalizes federal agencies that fail to properly report relevant records and incentivizes states to improve their overall reporting and directs more federal funding to the accurate reporting of domestic violence records. Within the Alabama delegation, Democrats U.S. Sen. Doug Jones and 7th District U.S. Rep. Terri A. Sewell are glad to see Trump’s support for policy change and are ready to see Congress take action. “I absolutely support strengthening our background check system, and I’m glad the President agrees,” said Jones. “We need better data reported to the database, we need to close the gun show loophole, and we need to look at ways we can improve school safety. These won’t fix the problem overnight, but they are common sense first steps that we can take immediately.” Sewell agrees the Fix NICS Act is a step in the right direction. “I strongly agree that the Congress must take bipartisan action to strengthen background checks and address the epidemic of gun violence that has claimed so many lives,” remarked Sewell. “The Fix NICS Act is a step in the right direction, but alone, it is not enough to address the tragic reality of gun violence in America that has struck communities from Parkland to Las Vegas to Newtown.” But Sewell doesn’t believe the bill, which is backed by the National Rifle Association (NRA) and the National Shooting Sports Foundation, goes far enough on its own. “This bill does not close the gun show loophole or prevent the reckless sale of bump stocks, both of which deserve legislative solutions,” Sewell added. “I believe the President’s support for Sen. Cornyn’s bill is proof of the growing public demand for action among both Republicans and Democrats. I have always been a strong proponent of the Second Amendment, but Congress can no longer settle for symbolic gestures when gun violence kills more Americans every day.” Meanwhile Republicans have remained mostly mum offering only their thoughts and prayers to the victims’ families. 1st District U.S. Rep. Bradley Byrne being the only exception. When Alabama Today asked all members of the Alabama delegation whether or not they supported improving the federal background check system, Byrne’s was the only Republican office to respond. “Congressman Byrne is open to evaluating any proposal from the Trump Administration regarding potential changes to the background check system. He will wait to review the proposals before weighing in,” said Byrne spokesperson Seth Morrow.
Martha Roby: Enhancing the protection of the Second Amendment
Our country’s Founders laid out certain rights in our Constitution in order to empower the people, not the government. Certainly among the most fundamental rights we have as Americans is the right to keep and bear arms, as declared by the Second Amendment. As a gun owner myself and a staunch defender of the Second Amendment, I am pleased to report that the House of Representatives has taken action to preserve Americans’ constitutional right and ensure that our background check system is functioning properly. The House has passed H.R. 38, the Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act of 2017, to enhance and standardize the protection of the Second Amendment by simply ensuring all law-abiding citizens who obtain concealed carry permits in their home states can exercise the right to protect themselves in any state. Our Second Amendment right doesn’t end when we cross the state line, and I believe individuals who meet the requirements for concealed carry in their home state should be allowed the same privileges in any state, of course provided that they obey the local concealed carry laws. That’s what H.R. 38 does. This bill also seeks to ensure that our current National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) is enforced and working properly. In the wake of the horrible shooting at a church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, we learned that the assailant had been allowed to legally purchase a firearm when he should not have been. If the system we have in place had worked, his time served in military prison for his history of domestic violence would have been properly reported into NICS by the U.S. Air Force, and he would have been prohibited him from obtaining such weapons. This oversight was unacceptable, deadly, and completely avoidable. That’s why H.R. 38 takes steps to hold federal agencies accountable for their responsibility to report information. Some gun control advocates claim that this bill somehow makes it easier for dangerous, unqualified individuals to obtain and carry guns. That is absolutely not true. If a citizen is currently prohibited from purchasing or possessing a firearm, this bill does nothing to change that. On the other hand, others have claimed this bill makes it harder for Americans to exercise their Second Amendment right. That’s not true either. H.R. 38 does nothing to infringe on any law-abiding citizen’s right to keep and bear arms, but rather seeks to ensure that our current laws are properly enforced. Those of us who respect the Second Amendment and dedicate our careers to defending it will always fight to protect this fundamental right from those who would try to erode it. It is precisely because we want to preserve the Second Amendment for future generations that we must uphold and enforce our current laws designed to ensure that dangerous people cannot legally obtain weapons. As a member of the Judiciary Committee that worked on this legislation, I’m proud that the House has taken this important action. I also appreciate the work of the National Rifle Association and other groups to help build support for this legislation. I hope the Senate takes up this bill quickly and sends it to the President’s desk. I will keep you posted as we move forward. ••• Martha Roby represents Alabama’s Second Congressional District. She lives in Montgomery, Alabama with her husband Riley and their two children.
Mike Rogers: Fighting for our rights in East Alabama
The Second Amendment is one of our most deeply held rights as Americans especially here in East Alabama. President Obama is infringing upon our cherished right by recently announcing executive action to tighten gun control laws. In response to his unlawful action, I joined my colleagues on a bill of disapproval. During his time in office, the president has shown blatant disregard for the Constitutional rights of Americans and has continuously overstepped his power by circumventing Congress and our lawmaking process to do whatever he wants. As a gun owner myself, I am strongly opposed to any action that places any type of restrictions on our right to bear arms. Just last week, I signed onto H.R. 4321, the Separation of Powers Restoration and Second Amendment Protection Act. This legislation would make any executive action that infringes on the power of Congress or on the Second Amendment be null and void while prohibiting funds for it. I am one of the most ardent defenders of our Second Amendment rights in the House. This Congress I have cosponsored five bills that help protect our gun rights. One of them that has gained much attention is H.R. 3126. This legislation would prohibit the Commissioner of Social Security from furnishing the name of any individual in a report to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System unless a Federal court has determined the individual to be mentally defective. This administrative action is another attempt by the anti-gun left to chip away at our rights. Remember their strategy, just like with President Obama’s executive orders, is to whittle away at our rights until the government gets in control of everything in our lives. That’s why we must stay vigilant and fight. I will continue to stand up for the United States Constitution and fight for our Second Amendment rights. Mike Rogers represents Alabama’s 3rd Congressional District. He is in his third term.
