The number of FBI background checks for firearm purchases in August swelled by more than 15%, both over the previous month and the previous year, according to data maintained by the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF). The Washington Examiner attributes the jump at least in part to “deep concerns congressional Democrats are going to push through expanded gun control legislation.”

The sudden surge of 15.2 percent in background checks, adjusted for sales, has only been exceeded once before–in August 2016 during the fierce presidential election season, the NSSF reported.

The current rush of background checks being conducted comes at a time when Democrats push for gun control measures, bans on “assault weapons,” and ammunition limits, as well as retailers retreating from their traditional involvement in the firearms marketplace.

On Monday, after a long, late-summer break, Congress was back in session, and Dems wasted no time demanding Republicans pass a controversial universal background check bill. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi warned there would be “hell to pay” if the bill is not passed. “We’re not taking ‘no’ for an answer, and we are not going away,” she added.

“Some of the gun violence prevention groups have upped the ante even further to say that if this bill is not passed, Mitch McConnell and Republicans in the Senate and the president will have hell to pay,” the Speaker said during a press conference. “So let’s save time.”

Such rhetoric certainly does weigh on the minds of citizens who cherish their Second Amendment rights and it makes sense that they are responding by purchasing weapons while they can, just in case leftists somehow get their way.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer was at the press conference along with other Democrats. “Background checks are the base from which we must do anything,” he said. “Two people in Washington can decide if the background check bill passes: Donald Trump and Mitch McConnell. It is totally up to them and is on their shoulders. They can’t escape that responsibility.”

President Trump has recently backed away from supporting universal background checks, saying they would not have done anything to prevent recent mass shootings over the past several years. He has indicated that his focus on addressing gun-related violence is on “mental illness.”

In 2016, presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, who was favored to win the election, called for gun control and an assault weapons ban. As a result, a record number of guns were sold throughout the year and the highest-ever number of FBI background checks were done.

Similar surges were seen during the Obama years, all of which reinforce common industry sentiment that the best gun marketers on the planet are Democrats. When they talk about plowing under the Second Amendment, gun stores fill up and inventories quickly drop.

The Examiner reported:

Justin Anderson, the marketing director for Hyatt Guns in Charlotte, North Carolina, one of the nation’s largest gun shops, said fears of a liberal gun grab and a drive for self-protection are pushing sales higher. “As we’ve seen in the past, the recent publicizing of mass shootings has fueled people’s concerns about their personal safety. We are seeing many first-time gun buyers, and our concealed carry classes are booking up quickly,” said Anderson. “Political figures talking about gun bans and confiscation is also starting to figure into sales. We’ve seen a slight uptick in the sale of tactical rifles as a result,” he added.

According to the Examiner: “NSSF said that the FBI told it that the overall NICS number for August was 2,341,363. That is 310,702 higher than July and 268,067 higher than August 2018.”

NICS is the National Instant Criminal Background Check System that determines if a prospective firearms buyer’s name and birth year match those of a person who is not eligible to buy.