AP Reporter Grasps for Negative Spin on Gun Sales Surge

Last week, Associated Press reporter Matt Stroud incorrectly implied that the recent increase in firearm-related background checks run through the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) frequently results in violent criminals beating the system and acquiring guns.

Noting that in situations in which NICS cannot complete a check on a prospective gun buyer within three business days, a firearm dealer is allowed to transfer a firearm to the person, Stroud hyperbolically wrote, “More gun sales than ever are slipping through the federal background check system. . . . [S]omeone is killed with a firearm every 16 minutes. Mass shootings are happening every few weeks. . . . If three business days pass without a federal response, buyers can legally get their guns, whether or not the check was completed.”

What Stroud neglected to mention--besides the fact that gun ownership is at an all-time high and the nation’s murder rate has fallen to at least a 57-year low--is that the FBI continues running checks after the three-day period has elapsed and reports all ultimate denials to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE) on a daily basis. Thereafter, BATFE personnel and local law enforcement officers can and do take action to separate prohibited persons from any firearms they may have acquired during the delay.

N.J. Attorney General Rejects Brady Campaign Bid to Trigger Handgun Ban

The Brady Campaign’s attempt to require “smart guns” in New Jersey recently hit a significant hurdle. In November, Acting Attorney General John Jay Hoffman issued a report that concluded the allegedly available “smart gun,” the Armatix iP1, did not meet New Jersey’s legal definition of a “personalized handgun.”

Wishing You Safe and Smooth Holiday Travel this Season

With the holidays upon us, NRA encourages travelers to be mindful of the gun laws of the jurisdictions they are traveling in, as well as those pertaining to the mode of travel. To help ensure that gun owners are informed, we would like to remind travelers of some of the basic guidelines for traveling with firearms and of resources where they can obtain further information on this topic. Those traveling with a firearm by air are required to store the firearm unloaded and locked in a hard-sided container, separate from any ammunition. The traveler must declare the firearm at the airline’s ticket counter. No firearms, firearm parts, or ammunition are allowed in carry-on luggage. TSA’s website provides detailed information about traveling by air with a firearm . . .

Take Action! Ask Congress to Protect the Interests of Law-Abiding Gun Owners

ACT NOW: As Congress considers budget legislation, the NRA respectfully urges that the interests of law-abiding gun owners and sportsmen be protected from the ongoing attacks of the anti-gun Obama Administration.

The NRA has worked hard to include numerous pro-gun provisions in the House of Representatives’ budget that would protect lawful gun owners and prevent federal government harassment and overreach on your right to Keep and Bear Arms.