Washington Post gives Booker three ‘Pinocchios’ for claiming toy guns are more regulated than real guns

“Nowadays, there is more regulation over toy guns than real ones. While medicine, children’s toys, and any number of other consumer products are subject to regulation by the federal government, firearms are exempt,” Booker’s campaign explained.

The Post fact-checker said gun manufacturers are subject to numerous laws and can be sued if their weapons malfunction. Gun manufacturers, however, cannot be sued if their products are used in criminal acts.

“Our industry is the most heavily regulated industry in the country. No other industry is regulated at the federal, state and local level to the extent our industry is regulated, which include design and performance standards,” Mark Oliva, a spokesman for the National Shooting Sports Foundation, told the Post.

“The federal agencies that regulate the industry include ATF, FBI, State Department, Commerce Department, IRS, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. No other consumer product requires the licensed dealer to conduct a criminal-background check on a prospective purchaser before they can sell the product. Firearm manufacturers can be sued for product defect claims, although such claims are exceedingly rare given that there are over 400 million firearms in civilian possession in the United States,” he said.

The Post said Booker was given the three Pinocchios because while he was clear that he wants gun designs to fall under Consumer Product Safety Commission regulation on the Medium post, he misled while discussing his plan on TV and in tweets, saying he wants “more federal regulation.”