“New York state has spent nearly $6 million over the past three years on subsidies for a two-century-old upstate factory that makes firearms including semiautomatic rifles used by the military and police and like those used in the recent mass killings in Connecticut and Webster, N.Y.,” wsj.com reports. Busted! Right? “Though several elected leaders in this tough-on-guns state want tighter restrictions on those military-style weapons, none say it’s time to stop supporting Remington Arms Co. and risk the nearly 1,000 jobs it provides in the central New York community of Ilion. The gunmaker has plenty of defenders, particularly those who support the continued manufacture of weapons used by the military or police.” Let me see if I’ve got this straight: it’s OK to give tax breaks to a company that makes “assault rifles” for the military or police, but it’s not OK if those very same guns go to civilians. In case you missed that point . . .

A spokeswoman for U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer said he has consistently said that he believes it’s appropriate for lawmakers to support production of semiautomatic assault-style weapons for military and law enforcement use, but that the guns don’t belong in the hands of civilians. Schumer, who has helped Remington secure Army contracts including an $8.9 million award in 2011 to produce 1,212 M24 sniper rifles, joined the company at last year’s event announcing the move of Bushmaster to Ilion.

I don’t remember the Senate’s number one gun grabber saying anything of the sort when he trumpeted the company’s expansion in March 2011. And what’s all this about the money going to Marlin not Bushmaster?

In 2010, Empire State Development, the agency that works with private companies to attract and retain jobs, announced $2.5 million in grants and subsidies to help Remington bring its Marlin lever-action gun production from Connecticut to Ilion and add 100 jobs. That followed two grants in 2009 worth $3 million for renovations and machinery.

“It was never the desire of the state of New York to subsidize the development of the sort of tactical weapons that ended up being used in Connecticut and now, I understand, in upstate New York as well,” said Assemblyman Charles Lavine, a Long Island Democrat. “By tactical weapons, I’m talking about a rifle such as the Bushmaster.”

I guess the fact that the company that bought Bushmaster consolidated production for Marlin, Bushmaster and Remington at the Ilion plant kinda slipped right by Mr. Lavine. As did the fact that the Freedom Group (a.k.a., the Borg) is politically connected and endlessly wealthy.

I guess it’s a good thing the Freedom Group’s up for sale. Anyone in their right mind who buys any or all of their brands should move production out of the Empire State as soon as possible, regardless of the taxpayer tit-sucking on offer. ‘Cause you never know who your friends are—until you do.

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41 COMMENTS

  1. Maybe they want them back. No AR15 used at Sandy Hook. 4 handguns instead. No bullet resistant vest either.

    • Huh? Link?

      Edit: A quick google search seems to confirm that an AR-15 was indeed used. This was confirmed by an investigating officer. Conspiracy theories get us nowhere, and it frankly doesn’t matter what type of gun the monster used. Trying to debunk this flies in the face of fact and gives the anti’s ammo.

        • Fair enough, though it’s important that we keep calling out the media out on their “Terror first, accuracy last” bullshit, so I think your post is still important. Particularly because even if he had been wearing a bullet proof vest, what would that have mattered? (question directed at media, not you)

      • Check the early stories on the shooting from almost any source. They all reported that the guns used in the elementary school were a Glock and Sig.

        Lanza did bring the Bushmaster with him from home, but he left it in the car that was parked in the school’s parking lot.

        The lame stream media lies about the “use” of the Bushmaster because it reinforces their gun control narrative.

        • After the initial reports, which are always conflicting, the CT coroner publicly reported that all the children were shot to death by .223 ammo. I see no reason to doubt him.

        • There were LOTS of early inaccuracies. The story changed every fifteen seconds early on, and it wasn’t until the investigating police department commented that the full story became known.

          I’m not making any accusations or trying to talk down to you or anything, but using out of date information is what truthers and other knuckleheads do to advance their agendas. Let’s not be like them.

        • Robert,

          Curious to know if that can be verified. I think you’d have to find bullets in the bodies to make that statement….

        • RF: By the time the medical examiner made his statement about a rifle being used the banners had already made their first attacks. You may call me a cynic, but once this became openly political the credibility of every official involved went down in my estimation.

        • Can anyone get the coroner’s report to verify if it’s true? I wouldn’t put it past the media to lie to us to further an agenda. They were complicit with the administration in covering up the lies related to Libya. The news agencies appear to be so biased that it’s akin to corruption.

        • This is according to a state police Lt:

          http://www.redstate.com/2012/12/27/setting-the-record-straight-adam-lanza-did-use-the-bushmaster-ar-15/

          The coroner was also quoted somewhere else as Robert said. Again, I’d be very, very careful about buying into conspiracy theories here. Particularly when the clear point needs to be that it doesn’t matter what kind of firearm he used. He intentionally chose the most defenseless victims imaginable in a place he knew no one would be armed. An AR wouldn’t magically make that situation worse.

        • “An AR wouldn’t magically make that situation worse.”

          Nor would the lack of it make it any better. Arguing over “which guns did he use” is not the conversation we need to be having. It’s a hand-waving distraction.

        • here’s the scary part to think about:
          1. he was found with 2 pistols and no rifle on him
          2. rifle was found in car outside, he never exited the school
          3.there were .223 rifle casings everywhere and since he had no rifle on him, it was assumed there were multiple shooters, that’s why there was a search for other shooters
          4. teachers (in the gym) on the phone with the police told them that they saw 2 distinct shadows run by the gym shortly after the shooting stopped
          5. right as this was relayed to the police on the scene, he yelled “they’re coming right at me!” he grabbed one of them and announced that he had him “proned out”. this was in the parking lot and witnesses saw this man face down in the lot with handcuffs on
          6. the other suspect continued running into the woods and other police gave pursuit, this footage is caught on a news helicopter cam. when they finally catch up to him, he is held at gunpoint on the ground, then cuffed and walked down to the school. he was wearing a black jacket/camo pants and as they walk him by the parent/survivors in the lot, he exclaims “it wasn’t me!”

          All of this is on police radio recordings, the first wyewitness accounts, and on news footage. this is all available on youtube. what happened to these 2 other guys and why did the police who were so convinced that there were multiple shooters suddenly change their story? if you really think about it, life doesn’t mean much to ones who are willing to bomb villages full of innocents. if a few childrens deaths can serve a political agenda, it might be considered a worthwhile sacrifice…
          youtube.com/watch?v=S59IXI9g6VE
          starting at 0:45

  3. Shows the liberal Hypocrisy of scum bags from elected in NY!

    Strange alot of small town cops need to buy ARs and sidearms like we do they dont have the funds like the NYPD or LAPD so when they ban them many cops cant get there guns too. Schumer is a idiot and scum bag!!

    • I beg your pardon! He is an OLEAGINOUS scumbag! It looks like he can’t tell the difference between soap and vaseline.

      • Had to look OLEAGINOUS up in me funkin wagnel. Why didn’t you just use a normal word, like unctuous? Just kiddin.

    • There was an Ohio cop on Armed American Radio last weekend who said his department is switching to AR-15 patrol rifles and the individual officers are required to purchase their own rifles and magazines. Feinswine doesn’t seem to care.

      • Don’t care they only want the ATF gestapo and FBI and the military they control to have “assault weapons” so they can enslave and oppress us when they want local cops in there little minds are like us part of there problem.

      • Isn’t it amazing, when a cop uses one it’s a PATROL RIFLE. when a soldier uses it it’s a tactical rifle. Let a civilian get one and the same rifle magically becomes an ASSAULT RIFLE………power of persuasion via preferred terminology not overlooked by gun opponents………………….

  7. TFG is getting out of the gun business because it was losing money. After TFG ran Remmy’s and Marlin’s brand equity into dust, TFG tried to screw Colt out of royalties owed by the Army for M4s and steal a government contract. They almost got away with it until Colt appealed and won. http://www.guns.com/2012/10/12/colt-protest-remington-gao-orders-army-to-request-new-bids-for-m4-contract/

    Once that happened, Remmy was finito, and so was TFG. Good riddance. It ruined the quality of Remmy, Marlin and the rest of it’s brands. I won’t be sorry to see these brands continued under other ownership.

  8. I want them out of guns because they suck. I want the old Marlin and Remington back damnit 🙁 TFG should go DIAF.

  10. Why doesn’t The Freedom Group use it’s influence to tell the NY Senators to stow it or they are leaving. That would have a pretty big effect. It’s funny how these senators are willing to kill jobs and the economy to further an Unconstitutional agenda. If TFG disclosed the effect of an AWB on the country from a jobs and economical perspective, I bet a bunch if grabbers would change their tune. Thousands of jobs lost because of ineffective legislation wouldn’t sit too well with the public. If they could only know the truth

  11. What is the point of your article? It vacillates between good and bad of actions taken with no point other then to convey information. With more and more media articles being put to question can I trust your information. It is not unusual for governments to give tax breaks to companies to influence the companies decision where to locate. I see no problem with the firearms they produce. It does concern me that another “mentally unbalanced” individual has killed little children. I stand behind the NRAs position of guns in teachers, principles, police or volunteers hands to help prevent these crimes (they still ain’t going to get them all). That said we must come to my point. Don’t throw away the constitution because of these deaths. If we take away the second amendment I feel the others will soon follow. Don’t give an inch, they will take all we hold dear.

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