Gun sales explode throughout the US

Democrats' victory leads to boom in gun sales

When 10-year-old Austin Smith heard Barack
Obama had been elected president, he had one question: Does this mean I
won't get a new gun for Christmas?

That
brought his mother, the camouflage-clad Rachel Smith, to Bob Moates
Sports Shop on Thursday, where she was picking out that special
20-gauge shotgun — one of at least five weapons she plans to buy before
Obama takes office in January.
Like
Smith, gun enthusiasts nationwide are stocking up on firearms out of
fears that the combination of an Obama administration and a
Democrat-dominated Congress will result in tough new gun laws.
"I think they're going to really try to crack
down on guns and make it harder for people to try to purchase them,"
said Smith, 32, who taught all five of her children — ages 4 to 10 — to
shoot because the family relies on game for food.

Last
month, as an Obama win looked increasingly inevitable, there were more
than 108,000 more background checks for gun purchases than in October
2007, a 15 percent increase. And they were up about 8 percent for the
year as of Oct. 26, according to the FBI.
No
data was available for gun purchases this week, but gun shops from
suburban Virginia to the Rockies report record sales since Tuesday's
election.
'Scared to death'
"They're
scared to death of losing their rights," said David ( No Swearing ), manager of
Bob Moates, where sales have nearly doubled in the past week and are up
15 percent for the year. On Election Day, salespeople were called in on
their day off because of the crowd.
Obama
has said he respects Americans' Second Amendment right to bear arms,
but that he favors "common sense" gun laws. Gun rights advocates
interpret that as meaning he'll at least enact curbs on ownership of
assault and concealed weapons.
As
a U.S. senator, Obama voted to leave gun-makers and dealers open to
lawsuits; and as an Illinois state legislator, he supported a ban on
semiautomatic weapons and tighter restrictions on all firearms.
During
an October appearance in Ohio, Obama sought to reassure gun owners. "I
will not take your shotgun away," he said. "I will not take your rifle
away. I won't take your handgun away."
Gun
advocates take some solace in the current makeup of the U.S. Supreme
Court, which ruled 5-4 this summer to strike down the District of
Columbia's 32-year ban on handguns. For now, gun rights supporters hold
a narrow edge on the court, but Obama could appoint justices who would
swing it the other way.
Single-day sales records
Franklin
Gun Shop outside Nashville, Tenn., sold more than 70 guns on Tuesday,
making it the biggest sales day since the shop opened eight years ago.
Guns & Gear in Cheyenne, Wyo., also set a one-day sales record on
Tuesday, only to break that mark on Wednesday.

Stewart
Wallin, owner of Get Some Guns in the Salt Lake City suburb of Murray,
Utah, said he sold nine assault weapons the day after Obama was
elected. That same day, the gun store Cheaper Than Dirt! in Fort Worth,
Texas, sold $101,000 worth of merchandise, shattering its single-day
sales record, store owner DeWayne Irwin said.
One
Georgia gun shop advertised an "Obama sale" on an outdoor sign, but the
owner took it down after people complained that the shop appeared to be
issuing a call to violence against the country's first black leader.
The
president of a Montana gun manufacturer stepped down last month after
word that he supported Obama led to calls for a boycott of the company.
NRA: Dem sweep spurs sales
While
Wayne LaPierre, executive vice president of the National Rifle
Association, attributes some of the sales boom to the tanking economy,
he thinks the Democratic sweep is the top reason why guns are suddenly
a hot commodity.


"I
don't think he'll be able to stand up to that anti-Second Amendment
wing of the Democratic party that's just been spoiling for chance to
ban America's guns," LaPierre said of Obama.
During
the campaign, the NRA warned that Obama would be the "most antigun
president in American history." And while Vice President-elect Joe
Biden owns shotguns, he has supported a ban on assault weapons and has
said private sellers at gun shows should be required to perform
background checks.
Gun regulations might be low priority
But
Mark Tushnet, a Harvard Law School professor who has written a book
about the gun debate, said new firearms regulations will be a low
priority for an Obama administration and Democratic Congress facing a
global economic crisis and two wars.

"Maybe
the gun-show loophole will be closed, but not much else," he said in an
e-mail. "I'd be surprised, for example, if Congress enacted a new
assault gun ban."
Paul
Helmke, president of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, said
his organization will continue to press for what he calls "sensible"
restrictions — background checks at gun shows, a ban on military-style
assault weapons and cracking down on illegal gun trade. He believes he
has the backing of the new administration on those issues, but any
fears of a broader crackdown are unfounded.
"The
one thing that they agree strongly with us on is that it's too easy for
dangerous people to get guns in this country," Helmke said. "I guess if
you're a dangerous person you might want to run out there and buy some
more, but otherwise you should be OK."