Seems to me, this could have been a relatively inexpensive to spank the Anti's where it hurts; show that the HUD deal was illegal. Thus preventing the same shenannigans in the future.
Or, did the NSSF do the right thing?
http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGAMCMYPMHC.html
Gun Makers Drop Lawsuit Against HUD
By Leigh Strope
Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) - Seven gun makers and a firearms group dropped their lawsuit Friday against the Department of Housing and Urban Development and 39 other government officials and municipalities over a program favoring manufacturer Smith & Wesson.
The gun makers said they were dropping the suit because a new Republican administration was about to take office and was thought unlikely to support the program. A HUD spokeswoman disputed that, saying the real reason the manufacturers dropped the suit was that they expected to lose.
The lawsuit was filed last April over a plan to give preferential treatment to Smith & Wesson when buying guns for law enforcement agencies after the gun maker had agreed to install gun locks on its weapons and block gun sales at gun shows without background checks.
Smith & Wesson implemented those measures in exchange for a promise that a lawsuit against it would be dropped. Any other gun maker that agreed to the plan also would be given preferential treatment.
"It is clear that the election of George W. Bush changes the dynamic regarding this pattern of government abuse coached by President Clinton and quarterbacked by" HUD Secretary Andrew Cuomo, said Robert T. Delfay, president and chief executive of the National Shooting Sports Foundation, a Connecticut-based firearms industry group.
The gun makers also said they dropped their suit because the preferential treatment plan has not been enforced.
HUD spokeswoman Lisa Macspadden said the reasons the gun makers cited for dropping the suit were "ridiculous."
She specifically disputed their assertion that the preferential treatment plan was not being enforced. "That statement is contrary to sworn affidavits submitted by gun makers that the coalition's efforts were indeed hurting their businesses," she said.
"The obvious reason for this retreat is that the gun industry knew that it did not have a leg to stand on and it was going to lose," she said. "The real issue remains the fact that gun makers refuse to make safer guns that will save lives."
Or, did the NSSF do the right thing?
http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGAMCMYPMHC.html
Gun Makers Drop Lawsuit Against HUD
By Leigh Strope
Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) - Seven gun makers and a firearms group dropped their lawsuit Friday against the Department of Housing and Urban Development and 39 other government officials and municipalities over a program favoring manufacturer Smith & Wesson.
The gun makers said they were dropping the suit because a new Republican administration was about to take office and was thought unlikely to support the program. A HUD spokeswoman disputed that, saying the real reason the manufacturers dropped the suit was that they expected to lose.
The lawsuit was filed last April over a plan to give preferential treatment to Smith & Wesson when buying guns for law enforcement agencies after the gun maker had agreed to install gun locks on its weapons and block gun sales at gun shows without background checks.
Smith & Wesson implemented those measures in exchange for a promise that a lawsuit against it would be dropped. Any other gun maker that agreed to the plan also would be given preferential treatment.
"It is clear that the election of George W. Bush changes the dynamic regarding this pattern of government abuse coached by President Clinton and quarterbacked by" HUD Secretary Andrew Cuomo, said Robert T. Delfay, president and chief executive of the National Shooting Sports Foundation, a Connecticut-based firearms industry group.
The gun makers also said they dropped their suit because the preferential treatment plan has not been enforced.
HUD spokeswoman Lisa Macspadden said the reasons the gun makers cited for dropping the suit were "ridiculous."
She specifically disputed their assertion that the preferential treatment plan was not being enforced. "That statement is contrary to sworn affidavits submitted by gun makers that the coalition's efforts were indeed hurting their businesses," she said.
"The obvious reason for this retreat is that the gun industry knew that it did not have a leg to stand on and it was going to lose," she said. "The real issue remains the fact that gun makers refuse to make safer guns that will save lives."