In just one more way Second Amendment supporters have come under fire, GE Capital has announced it will cease providing consumer loans to gun shops.
The lending arm of General Electric made the change on Wednesday, citing “industry changes, new legislation and tragic events that have caused widespread reexamination of policies on firearms,” according to a statement printed in The Los Angeles Times.
A GE spokesman, Russell Wilkerson, told The New York Times the change was merely an expansion of a policy enacted in 2008, when GE Capital “adopted a policy to cease providing consumer financing programs to merchants whose primary business is to sell firearms.” Existing relationships with gun merchants were grandfathered in, but Wednesday’s announcement means loans to those retailers will also cease.
Fewer than 75 gun retailers were affected by the policy change, Wilkerson told The New York Times, as the switch only impacts retailers that primarily sell guns. The announcement won’t affect large merchants that sell other items as well as guns, such as Walmart or Dick’s Sporting Goods.
Since firearm loans are relatively small, the termination of these loans won’t impact GE Capital’s profits.
As USA Today reported, GE Capital’s shun of gun shops is not unique. Wells Fargo and Citigroup also don’t finance firearm loans.
