Local gun owners react to president's executive actions on gun control

COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) - Shoppers at a local gun store shared their thoughts on President Obama's executive actions on gun control Tuesday.
 
Many who were shopping at Palmetto State Armory told WIS that they feel as long as their Second Amendment rights aren't being infringed upon, they don't mind the government implementing stricter regulations.
 
What they are taking issue with, however, is the way President Obama is enacting the new rules.
 
"People don't like to be bullied. If America decided as a whole, as a country, that they wanted to regulate firearms a little more stringently, then they will. And people will support it," said Adam Ruonala, Palmetto State Armory's Chief Marketing Officer. "But, when one man is making the decision for everybody, unfortunately you have a little bit of resistance."
 
A piece of the president's executive action aims to make the background check system more efficient and stricter, while ensuring that NICS (The National Instant Criminal Background Check System) has all appropriate records about users.
 
But Palmetto State Armory employees say they already have a strict policy when it comes to background checks. If a background check doesn't come back within thirty days, Palmetto State Armory begins the whole process again. They make the potential buyer refile the government-mandated form. They also don't follow the three day waiting period rule which allows a gun dealer to sell to a customer even if their background check hasn't come back within 72 hours.
 
With all the buzz, Ruonala expects gun sales to go up.

"Any time firearms are in the news you're going to see attention to this industry. So, we encourage people to come in here and responsibly purchase and responsibly train in regards to firearms," Ruonala says.

When it comes to online sales, Ruonala says there's a common misconception that if someone orders a gun online, they may not go through the background check process.

Not true, he says. Anything serialized, whether it's a gun part or a gun itself, requires the buyer to go through the same process.
 
The president's executive order does not change the background process itself, but what it will do is help hire additional examiners and other staff to assist with expediting background checks so nobody falls through the cracks.

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