Atlanta Journal Constitution Blames Trump for Not Helping the Gun Industry Enough

Gun Watch ^ | 29 July, 2017 | Dean Weingarten

[marktwain]

June sales chart not yet released. May shows industry growth since 2000

A staff writer for the Atlanta Journal Constitution blog has stretched the truth a considerable amount in saying that President Trump has been detrimental to the gun industry. From myajc.com:

President Donald Trump may yet rejuvenate coal mining or bring manufacturing jobs back to the United States. But his election already seems to have been detrimental to at least one economic sector: the gun industry.

With the new president firmly aligned with gun-rights advocates, the FBI performed 9 percent fewer firearms background checks in the first half of this year compared to January through June 2016, according to newly released data.

In Georgia, the decrease was even greater. From January to June, the FBI performed about 269,000 background checks in Georgia – 11 percent fewer than the 302,000 it logged in the first half of 2016.

2016 was the highest year for background checks conducted by the FBI NICS (National Instant background Check System) ever.  2017 looks to be the second highest number of NICS ever. Through June, 2017, there were 12,601,102 NiCS checks. That is a little lower than 2016 for the same period. 2016 set records because of fears of Hillary Clinton being elected and passing legislation making it hard to buy and own guns.

In 2016, the first six months had 13,829,491 background checks. That was the all time record for the first half of a year. 2013 held the next highest number of background checks, when gun buyers feared that President Obama would pass restrictions on owning and selling guns. 2013 had 11,445,851  NICS checks in the first half of the year.

It is clear that 2017 gun sales were a bubble created by fear of Hillary Clinton. But instead of the bubble bursting, as people thought would happen with a Trump election, gun sales have only slowed down a little.

2016 was the hottest years for gun sales, ever. 2017 is on track to be the 2nd hottest. Stepping back a little from record sales is *not* bad for the firearms industry.

Any news can be twisted into "bad" news caused by President Trump. The National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) is the gun industry group that most gun manufacturers belong to. It adjusts the NICS checks for gun sales, taking out the NICS done for carry permits or for permit rechecks. Their adjusted numbers show better news for the industry than the unadjusted NICS do. From thinkingafield.org:

The second quarter 2017 NSSF-adjusted National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) figure of 3,116,282 is a decrease of 2.0 percent over the 3,179,825 figure for second quarter 2016.

The adjusted NICS data were derived by subtracting out NICS purpose code permit checks and permit rechecks used by several states such as Connecticut, Illinois, and Utah for CCW permit application checks as well as checks on active CCW permit databases. NSSF started subtracting permit rechecks in February 2016.

According to the Industry group, the first half of 2017 is within 2% of the all time record for gun sales set in 2016.  That is not bad news. Six months that comes within 2 percent of the all time record for sales, is good news.


©2017 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

Gun Watch

[marktwain]

Approaching the second highest year of gun sales ever.

Staff of Atlanta Journal Constitution says Trump "detrimental" ti gun sales.

[Reno89519]

Just ask for Congress to pass national CCW recognition, then sign it, will open up a lot of new business demand throughout the US.

[Pollster1]

In a sense they are right. If Hillary had won, there would be no guns or ammo on the shelves in any gun store in the country.

[American in Israel]

A whole lot more guns in the street though.

[RC one]

The gun industry did just fine in the 200+ years before the Obama panic. I think they should be able to manage just fine now that the panic is over. for a while at least.

[Yo-Yo]

Well, at some point you reach market saturation. My wife thinks I've already reached it...

Get H.R.38 passed. I know, the Second Amendment is my carry permit, but let's still pass National Reciprocity anyway.

[RC one]

passage of the hearing protection act would help firearm sales as well as all the major manufacturers would be able to get in on the action.

[Billthedrill]

Ammo subsidies. Dang it, if the gummint can subsidize corn it can subsidize ammo.

[Paladin2]

How many guns can one afford to buy ammo for?

[Paladin2]

The greatest Gun Salesman of the Year for the last 8-9 years is retired...

What do you expect?

[alloysteel]

The absence of the Obama regime probably is the greatest depressant to gun sales.

Barack Hussein Obama was the greatest gun salesman the world has ever seen. Now that he is largely off the active stage, people have relaxed, perhaps dropping their guard a little TOO hastily.

Because the gun ownership suppression people WILL be back.

Maybe Michael Bloomberg shall run for President in 2020. After all, he has more money than Donald Trump.

[Dusty Road]

Had a pistol come in yesterday and when I went to pick it up my buddy said there has been a noticeable drop in his gun sales. The fear is gone and people just are not buying like they were when the Dems were in office.

[alancarp]

OTOH, there might be a bunch of bargains out there by Christmas.

[Defenestrator]

I certainly hope there will be a whole lot more guns in the streets. It might make thugs, murderers, thieves, and rapists think twice.

[Farmer Dean]

Reloading is the answer.Even better if you can cast your own bullets.

[moovova]

...and the Hearing Protection Act. I would need guns with threaded barrels...lotta threaded barrels.

[Ancesthntr]

If President Trump wants to REALLY get the gun industry geared up, he needs to push HARD to get Title 18, Section 922(o) repealed. We’ll have a million full autos sold in a year, 10 million in 5 years. That’ll bump up sales a bit...and also boost ammo sales.

[ealgeone]

If Hillary had won, there would be no guns or ammo on the shelves in any gun store in the country.

THIS!

Then they'd be writing about how those "Second Amendment" types were arming up again.

[TigersEye]

Trump is an amazing guy but it’s going to be hard to top 0bama as a gun salesman.

[TigersEye]

A whole lot more guns in the street though.

But those would be redistributed guns not new gun sales via the home burglary loophole.