On Friday, Gun manufacturer Daniel Defense posted a message on their company Facebook page saying they support the 'Fix NICS' bill.
After receiving backlash from customers and the Second Amendment community as a whole, the company has since changed their position. Another message was posted to their company Facebook page saying they have rescinded their support for the bill:
Message from Marty Daniel:
Friends,
First and foremost, let me say that I have heard your voices. I put out a statement on Friday, supporting Senate Bill S.2135 also known as the Fix NICS Act. I have received overwhelming feedback since putting out this statement, which has brought to my attention that there are significant and justified concerns regarding this bill. I can no longer in good conscience put my support behind S.2135.
I released the original statement because I believed it was the best option available at this time to hold back the continued attacks on the Second Amendment and the erosion of our rights. I was wrong.
Let me be very clear:
• My life’s work is to protect an individual’s right to keep and bear arms by holding our lawmakers accountable to the Second Amendment.
• I believe that all firearms laws that limit the rights of law abiding citizens are unconstitutional.
• I will never support any legislation which infringes on any individuals rights, and could potentially subvert due process.
• Myself, my Family, and Daniel Defense love and serve our Veterans every day. I would never support a legislative measure which would strip them of their rights based on their history of service and sacrifice.
Thank you to everyone who reached out and voiced your concerns. You are a motivated and passionate group of people which I am proud to call my peers, my friends, and my family. We are all united in one fight – the fight to support and defend the Constitution of the United States of America. I will never turn my back on you. I stand with you and I am ready to continue to fight for our rights.
-Marty
Customers were quick to comment on the sudden change in position.
Eric Buss said he believed Marty Daniel was trying to say something completely different:
What this statement really says:
Due to growing concerns regarding future profitability and earning potential, I rescind my previous position and will simply say whatever you want me to say.
-Marty
"First and foremost, let me say I heard your voice the first time. Let me be very clear. It is human to be wrong. It is negligence to back a political stance not knowing its full extent. If you truly believed nothing should infringe upon our 2A rights, then you would have never released the first statement. It doesn't work like that. You backpedal only for self-preservation," Lloyd Crowder Jr. explained. "I stand by my initial response. I am VERY glad I bought BCM instead of DD. I now know why. My gut is usually right. This just confirms it even more. Thank you for your admission of wrongdoing. Now if you truly wish to support the 2A cause, put your money behind your words and fight like never before. You just might win back a few customers. Good day, Sir."
"Too late to try and stop the damage. Should have thought about it before you made the statement," Brandon Lee replied. "This wasn’t some moral revolution, you saw the prospects of lost revenue. This action makes most principled people lose even more respect for DD."
"You put out your message, something you believed in and when people came back at you, telling you that they would find another brand, you 'realized' you were mistaken," Chris Pursell said. "Just be honest and say you still believe your first post and you didn't look at your customers as educated individuals who would call you out. It affected your wallet, nothing more, nothing less...So piss off Marty....the John McCain of the firearms industry."
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