Dick's CEO says they melted $5 million worth of assault rifles after halting sales

Laura Clawson

Daily Kos Staff

Tuesday October 08, 2019 · 8:04 AM MDT

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While Republican lawmakers stand firmly in the way of anything that might reduce gun violence, the CEO of one major retail chain put hundreds of millions of dollars in profit on the line—and took $5 million in assault weapons directly out of play. Ed Stack, the CEO of Dick’s Sporting Goods (and son of the company’s founder), told CBS News that he didn’t stop with his highly publicized move of stopping sales of assault weapons and high-capacity magazines and all gun sales to people under 21 after the Parkland school shooting, a move he made after finding out that the shooter had bought a shotgun at Dick’s, and a move that cost the chain around $250 million.

Stack was faced with the decision of what to do with the assault-style weapons Dick’s had in stock at the time the chain stopped selling the guns. “I said, 'You know what? If we really think these things should be off the street, we need to destroy them.” So they did, turning $5 million of guns into scrap metal.

A pro-assault-weapons advocate told CBS News that “If they don't want guns, that's their right. It feels really anti-American to start creating public policy through corporate policy.” Which is a fascinating statement, because it is a terrible thing to have the government cede responsibility for progress to corporations, but sadly it is a very American thing to have happen. And if congressional Republicans would pass an assault weapons ban—a very popular policy—then it wouldn’t be left up to corporate CEOs.