Gun Advocates Want Civilian Training Continued Senators’ Proposal To Unload Marksmanship Program Blasted

Two Spokane gun-training advocates are critical of a plan by two Democratic senators to halt a nearly century-old firearms program.

Sens. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., and Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J., are urging Congress to rescind the $2.5 million in taxpayer money for this year’s Civilian Marksmanship Program.

The Pentagon-funded program, administered through the Department of Civilian Marksmanship (DCM), provides firearms training to civilians.

The senators contend the government sponsored program, which has provided free or subsidized ammunition, may inadvertently assist militia groups.

“The American people have a right to know that their tax dollars are not being used to train people who pose a threat to law-abiding citizens and to the peace and order of this country,” Lautenberg said in a Senate speech.

“The military does not need a ready supply of ordinary civilians who know how to shoot a rifle,” Lautenberg said, according to a report by The Associated Press.

“I disagree strongly with that,” said Dennis Schumauch of Spokane, who has been involved with the program for most of his life.

He said the program provides needed gun-safety training and marksmanship to young people.

Schumauch, 52, said he benefited from the program, administered through a gun club, when he was growing up in Dillon, Mont.

“I think the DCM training helped me tremendously in learning how to shoot a rifle,” Schumauch said. “When I was drafted into the Army, I already knew how to shoot.”

Tanya Metaksa, the National Rifle Association’s chief lobbyist, said the DCM program is for young people, “not for militia or so-called militia people,” The Associated Press reported.

The program used to provide free ammunition through gun clubs registered with the Department of Civilian Marksmanship. It now provides firearms training manuals and offers government-surplus M-1 rifles for sale at market value.

Schumauch said it takes about a year to buy one of the old military rifles, after the DCM administrators in Washington, D.C., do criminal background checks on buyers.

Doug Shurtleff, also of Spokane, said the program has provided subsidized ammunition for use in rifle training and competitive shooting.

“I have no idea of anybody in any militia when I was in it,” Shurtleff said, “but I’m not sure of everybody who was there.”

Schumauch said he favors expanding the program to the size it was in the 1950s and 1960s when free ammunition was provided.

“I think the civilian marksmanship program is blameless in this militia thing,” Schumauch said. “I wouldn’t believe Dianne Feinstein if she was standing on stack of Bibles. She’s just very anti-gun.”