When Obama speaks, gun sales skyrocket

Given his position as a longtime board member with the National Rifle Association, former Idaho Sen. Larry Craig would do well by endorsing Hillary Clinton for the presidency.

NRA membership has exploded and gun sales have skyrocketed with President Obama in the White House, and the gun business likely would grow even more under a Clinton presidency. When a conservative Republican occupies the white House, NRA membership tends to drop.

Craig, a hardcore Republican, isn’t going to change his party loyalty. But a smile comes to his face when he talks about what happens when the leading Democrats talk about gun control. This year, guns were flying off the shelves faster than Christmas toys. The president’s words after shootings in Paris and San Bernardino, Calif., did not have a calming influence.

“On Black Friday, and that Saturday and Sunday, there were 355,000 background checks (required to purchase weapons) in this country, a record number,” Craig said.

During his days in the Senate, Craig would jokingly encourage Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California — a longtime friend and political adversary — to sponsor a gun-control bill as a way to boost NRA membership. But Craig says even Feinstein, for all her passion about gun control, could not write an air-tight bill that would put an end to mass shootings.

“It can’t be done,” Craig says. “People talk about denying guns to those on the no-fly list. But the list is faulty. A person might be on the list because of business ties with certain countries. People want to take away semi-automatic weapons, but some semi-automatic weapons are used in hunting. People want to control Saturday night specials — something that people can afford to protect themselves.”

The bottom line is, there’s no way to legislate against crazy.

Despite the attacks on the NRA from the left and much of the media, Craig says the organization is all for safeguards such as accurate and timely background checks and the establishment of greater school zone safety.

“Just putting an officer in the school can make all the difference in the world,” Craig said. “What is the only organization that has spent tens upon thousands of dollars on school safety? It was the NRA. The government didn’t do it; the justice department didn’t do it. Their answer was to deny guns, or confiscate guns.”

Craig does not fit the stereotype of an NRA enthusiast. He owns a few guns, but does not have a vault full of weapons and only occasionally visits the shooting range. But he has strong passion about protecting Second Amendment rights, which are fundamental to the Constitution.

“There are some rights that are sacred, and one of them is the right to self-defense and protection of property,” he said. “The NRA is the most dynamic civil rights organization in the history of the United States.”

During a time of emergency, he asks, “do you call 911 and wait 40 minutes, or do you defend yourself?”

For years, gun advocates have said the best way to stop a “bad guy” with a gun is a “good guy” with a gun. That’s true, to an extent. But for someone such as myself, I’d take my chances on calling 911. I’m not trained to respond to a dangerous situation, and my one and only trip to a shooting range a few years ago was a disaster. I would not be the guy who could react quickly enough at a shooting scene.

But with training, which NRA instructors provide, I could give myself a better chance at protecting myself. Taking away guns is not the answer.

When Obama talks about gun control, Craig says, “take him for what he is — a liberal Democrat who goes through a list of items he must cover as a liberal Democrat. Even he knows it’s impossible to do, but it’s a rhetorical thing he has to play, or thinks he has to play.”

Craig, known for his expertise on gun issues during his three decades in Congress, has been in the middle of gun debates.

“Much of it centers on how you paint the image,” he said. “I say don’t let the government become the artist and define what people can and cannot do.”

The NRA, as usual, will weigh in on the presidential election. It’s a good bet that the organization will not side with Hillary Clinton — and the odds are even better that Craig won’t, either.

Chuck Malloy is a native Idahoan and long-time political reporter and editorial writer. He is a former political editor with the Post Register of Idaho Falls and a former editorial writer with the Idaho Statesman. He may be contacted at: ctmalloy@outlook.com.