Philadelphia Gun Show Will Go On, And Will Include Assault Weapons
By Mike DeNardo and Jericka Duncan
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- A Philadelphia gun show is on for this weekend, even as a Harrisburg show is postponed after exhibitors balked at a ban on assault weapons.
Unlike the Harrisburg show (see related story), the Philadelphia show -- Saturday and Sunday at the National Guard Armory -- includes semi-automatic weapons.
"Those weapons are available here," says Dave Zeller, a spokesman for Appalachian Promotions, which produces the show. "The dealers that we have are licensed both by the federal government and the State of Pennsylvania."
Despite the gun control debate sparked by the Connecticut school shooting, Zeller says there was never any thought of postponing the Philadelphia show:
"Why should we? What we're doing is a lawful activity. It's legal by federal law and it's legal by state law. It's no different than if we were going to do a boat show."
Zeller says gun shows are more popular than ever, as Second Amendment advocates rally around the right to bear arms.
