Gun Industry Group Says It Kicked Out Dick's Sporting Goods Over "Unconstitutional" New Policies, Gun-Control Lobbying Effort

Dick's accused of 'trying to impose their view ... on the industry by hiring a lobbyist to lobby for gun control'

The National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) told the Washington Free Beacon its recent decision to expel Dick's Sporting Goods was based on the company's decision to lobby for new gun-control legislation.

"They went beyond simply making decisions for their own company and are trying to impose their view and their decisions on other companies in the industry by hiring a lobbyist to lobby for gun control," Larry Keane, NSSF senior vice president and general counsel, told the Free Beacon. "The CEO of Dick's, which owns Field and Stream, is on the record as saying he wants to see a ban on modern sporting rifles, he wants to see restrictions on magazines, and also wants to see an unconstitutional restriction on the ability of young adults to purchase any firearm."

Keane said that while NSSF did not agree with Dick's decision to remove certain rifles and ammunition magazines from their shelves, the decision was "not because of their internal decision about what products they would and wouldn't sell."

"We respect the right of companies to make their own decisions," he said.

More