Smith & Wesson president and CEO Mark Smith issued a statement in which he said that politicians who have denigrated the gun manufacturer have actually contributed to the nation’s crime problem due to the policies that they support.
“A number of politicians and their lobbying partners in the media have recently sought to disparage Smith & Wesson. Some have had the audacity to suggest that after they have vilified, undermined, and defunded law enforcement for years, supported prosecutors who refuse to hold criminals accountable for their actions, overseen the decay of our country’s mental health infrastructure, and generally promoted a culture of lawlessness, Smith & Wesson and other firearm manufacturers are somehow responsible for the crime wave that has predictably resulted from these destructive policies,” the statement reads.
“But they are the ones to blame for the surge in violence and lawlessness, and they seek to avoid any responsibility for the crisis of violence they have created by attempting to shift the blame to Smith & Wesson, other firearm manufacturers and law-abiding gun owners,” Smith continued.
Many politicians remain staunch advocates for gun control measures — last month the U.S. House of Representatives passed the “Assault Weapons Ban of 2022,” though the bill will probably not advance through in the Senate.
While the term “gun violence” has become a commonplace expression, guns do not commit crimes, people do.
“To be clear, a Smith & Wesson firearm has never broken into a home; a Smith & Wesson firearm has never assaulted a woman out for a late-night run in the city; a Smith & Wesson firearm has never carjacked an unsuspecting driver stopped at a traffic light. Instead, Smith & Wesson provides these citizens with the means to protect themselves and their families,” Smith declared.
“We will never back down in our defense of the 2nd Amendment,” he concluded.
The Second Amendment of the Constitution states, “A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”