MILLER: Guns blazing since election

From the Washington Times - by Emily Miller - President Obama’s re-election has sent Americans running to the gun stores. Sales of firearms and ammunition are way up in reaction to Mr. Obama saying during the debates he wants to ban everything from “cheap handguns” to common hunting rifles with scary-looking features.

Gun sales at H & H Shooting Sports Complex in Oklahoma City, Okla., have risen 105 percent in the past week, with handguns outselling long guns 3 to 1. The new guns are being put to use. Miles Hall, founder of the 32-year-old company, said he finds his 55-position shooting range is now at capacity 30 minutes after the 9 a.m. opening bell. Industry insiders expect gun sales to continue to rise based on recent patterns leading up to the election. According to a report by the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), imports in arms and ammunition increased 59 percent in September compared to a year earlier. NSSF also reported gun-related background checks, adjusted by the organization to give a more accurate reflection of firearms sales, showed an 18 percent increase in October over the same month in 2011.
“The increase in firearms and ammunition sales as a result of election reflects the ongoing concern among law-abiding gun owners that this administration will pursue anti-gun policies during its second term,” said NSSF general counsel Lawrence Keane. “If past is prologue, when we see a push for gun control often comes during a second term. For example, the Clinton administration in its second term orchestrated a coordinated attack on the firearms industry and the fundamental civil liberties of law-abiding Americans protected by the Second Amendment.”
Mr. Obama has four years in which he is likely to appoint Supreme Court justices and use the regulatory apparatus at his disposal to fulfill his mission to restrict firearms, even if Congress doesn’t go along. Americans are smart to stock up now. Read full column

MILLER: Guns blazing since election