Firearms-makers to politicians on gun rights: You balk, we walk

A growing number of firearms firms in the United States are vowing to reverse-boycott local and state governments that enact any new infringements on the Second Amendment.

Vowing to close what they're calling "the police loophole," at least 50 US companies, ranging from gun machinists to gun shops, are now saying publicly they'll refuse to sell weapons and gear to police in places where governments have banned the use of the same gear by civilians.

Quality Arms, located in Rigby, Idaho, writes on its website that it "will not supply any firearm or product manufactured by us or any other company, nor will we warranty, repair, alter or modify a firearm owned by any state, county or municipality that infringes on the right of its citizens to bear arms under the 2nd Amendment."

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The move comes as Congress and some state houses are considering new gun controls in the wake of the Dec. 14 massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. The most direct target of the "police loophole" movement seems to be New York State, which put into law a raft of new gun-control regulations, including limiting the size of magazines, last month.

"Based on the recent legislation in New York, we are prohibited from selling rifles and receivers to residents of New York [so] we have chosen to extend that prohibition to all governmental agencies associated with or located within New York," York Arms of Buxton, Maine, writes on its website.

So far, none of the major gun manufacturers have joined the list, and it's an open question whether the smaller companies are bluffing or would even have occasion to sell directly to governments in New York State, for example.

"Unless S&W, Springfield Armory, Ruger, Remington, etc. get on board, these boycotts are practically useless," writes an anonymous poster on the Sipsey Street Irregulars blog.

Meanwhile, the push for more gun control continues across the country, led by President Obama.

On Friday, Mr. Obama's political advocacy group, Organizing for Action, held more than 100 events across the country, including letter-writing parties, rallies with police chiefs and mayors, and candlelight vigils, to push for Obama's federal gun-control plan, which includes beefing up background checks and banning assault weapons and high-capacity magazines.

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