By Randy Furst
Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak said Wednesday that he and leaders of other cities across the country plan to meet with major U.S. companies that supply guns and ammunition to municipal police forces and press them to stop supporting efforts to block gun control.
Rybak, appearing before a City Council committee, said a member of Congress told him that one obstacle to gun control measures is that gun and ammunition manufacturers were supporting National Rifle Association efforts to defeat such legislation.
Rybak said that since 2008, Minneapolis has spent about $200,000 on guns and $600,000 on ammunition. The guns are bought by police officers themselves out of stipends provided to them for uniforms and equipment.
Rybak said the cities hope to learn whether the manufacturers "are working with us or working against us" to achieve gun control measures. He implied that cities would then make their weapons purchases accordingly. "I believe we should put our money where our mouth is," he told the council committee.
Rybak said that about 60 U.S. cities will be part of the effort, and that he believed they can have some leverage, particularly with large cities like Los Angeles involved.
