ALR
Member
- Joined
- Jun 30, 2025
- Messages
- 11
I put in transcript because not available. Who knew?
You know, every now and then Washington
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drops a piece of legislation that barely
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makes a blip on the nightly news, but
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for those of us who actually shoot,
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train, and buy ammo by the case, it's a
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gamecher. And this month, just before
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the Fourth of July fireworks even hit
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the sky, they signed off on one of the
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biggest defense spending packages we've
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seen in over a decade. Now, most folks
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are busy arguing about the political
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noise wrapped around it. But buried deep
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in those pages is something that'll hit
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our local gun shops, online retailers,
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and range ammo bins harder than anything
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else in that bill. I'm talking about
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serious money. Billions flowing straight
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into America's ammunition production
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system. Here's the kicker. If you've
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been watching ammo prices the last few
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years, you know the drill. In 2020, a
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thousand round case of 5.56 NATO that
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used to run you 400 bucks suddenly shot
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past $1,000,
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if you could even find it. Shelves went
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bare, small shops were begging for
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stock, and online orders were backlogged
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for months. Well, this new bill, it's
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designed to make sure that doesn't
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happen again. We're talking massive
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upgrades to plants like the Lake City
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Army Ammunition Plant, the same place
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cranking out millions of rounds that end
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up in civilian hands every single year.
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They're not just topping off military
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stockpiles, they're reinforcing the
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whole supply chain so regular shooters
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like you and me can keep our mags full
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without taking out a second mortgage.
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And if you think this is just government
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business with no civilian impact, you're
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dead wrong. History says otherwise. Half
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of the small arms ammo from facilities
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like Lake City flows right into our
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market. Meaning your next range trip,
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your hunting season, your training
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course, all of it just got a lot more
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secure. Let's break down the real
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firepower behind this bill. First up,
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there's a hund00 million locked in to
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ramp up production of 5.56 NATO and 7.62
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62 NATO. Two of the most widely used
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calibers on the planet. On paper, that
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sounds like a militaryonly play, but if
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you know how Lake City Army ammunition
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plant operates, you know better. This
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isn't some top secret bunker cranking
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out rounds only for Uncle Sam. Lake City
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is a production giant turning out
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hundreds of millions of rounds a year.
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And historically, almost half of that
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ends up in civilian hands. Hunters,
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competitive shooters, weekend range
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warriors, all of us have felt the ripple
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from what they make. And this isn't new.
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Back after the Vietnam War, when the
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military downsized, many ammo plants
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faced a grim choice. Either take
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civilian contracts or let the lines go
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cold. Civilian sales became the lifeline
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that kept skilled workers on the job and
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machines running hot. So when a national
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call came, production could surge
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instantly. That balance between military
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readiness and civilian access has kept
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our ammo ecosystem alive for decades.
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Now add to that a massive 1 billion
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investment in what they're calling next
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generation ammunition production
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facilities. This isn't just a facelift.
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It's a complete modernization.
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Imagine robotics moving brass cases down
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the line. climate controlled powder
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rooms, automated primer seating systems,
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and faster caliber changeovers. So, a
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line running 5.56 in the morning can
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switch to 7.62 NATO by lunch without
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missing a beat. Cleaner, safer, faster.
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That's the kind of upgrade that boosts
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military output while flooding the
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civilian market with more consistent
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supply. Then there's the $2 billion raw
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materials play. We're talking primers,
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brass, powders, the holy trinity of
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cartridge making. The 2020 shortage
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taught us that you can have all the
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presses in the world, but without
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primers, you're dead in the water. Back
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then, reloaders were paying triple or
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quadruple normal prices. Brass shipments
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were late, powder orders were stuck in
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limbo, and some plants sat idle waiting
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for parts. This funding is like building
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a national ammo pantry, making sure the
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shelves stay stocked so that the next
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panic, whether from politics, global
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chaos, or another wave of new gun
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owners, doesn't bring production to a
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halt. And yeah, $10 million for
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workforce expansion might seem like
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pocket change compared to those
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billions, but don't underestimate it.
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