POLITICS CREATES THE STRANGEST BEDFELLOWS

Oops, the NRA Agrees With Obama

By Bill Schneider, 1-29-09

Editor’s Note: I posted my weekly column (Are Bison Wildlife or Livestock?) early this week, but I couldn’t help filling up my normal Thursday slot with this little political irony for all my gun nutty friends.--Bill Schneider

Politics can be frustrating and maddening, but it can also be interesting and ironical.

Take, for example, the recent political revelation that the National Rifle Association (NRA) agrees with President Obama, a headline you haven’t seen anywhere except on NewWest.Net.

We’ve probably all heard about New York Democratic Governor David Patterson picking upstate Democratic Congresswoman Kristen Gillibrand to fill the U.S. Senate seat vacated by Senator Hillary Clinton when she accepted a new role as Secretary of State in the Obama Administration. But you probably haven’t heard how this made the NRA an Obama supporter.

First a little background. Politically, New York is one of the most anti-gun states, especially in New York City where Mayor Michael Bloomberg constantly beats the political drums for more gun control and has his words repeatedly shot full of freedom holes by the NRA and other pro-gun groups. Upstate New York leans to the right and is more conservative and gun-happy than the city, but hardly Idaho or Montana in its view of Second Amendment rights.

So, here’s what happened. The minute Patterson revealed his choice for Clinton’s seat, Mayor Bloomburg, Congresswoman and NRA arch-nemesis Carolyn McCarthy (D-NY) and other anti-gun politicos and groups blasted the appointment because--surprise!-- Gillibrand has a hundred percent or “A” rating from none other than the NRA. She is one of the few democrats earning such a score for Second Amendment voting.

(Incidentally, the Gun Owners of America (GOA), normally considered a little right of the NRA, isn’t quite as thrilled with Gillibrand, giving her a “C” rating, but still respectfully decent considering that 22 out of 26 New York Democratic Representatives received “F” or “F-” ratings and three “D” or “D-,” making Gillibrand’s “C” the highest Democrat score in the state.)

Even though New York went strongly for Obama back on November 4, our new president didn’t seem the least bit concerned about Gillibrand’s voting record on gun issues and declared her a “wonderful choice” to fill Clinton’s chair in the U.S, Senate. Here’s exactly what he said: “Governor Paterson made a wonderful choice in appointing Kirsten Gillibrand to fill Secretary Clinton’s seat in the United States Senate. I am confident that she will continue Secretary Clinton’s distinguished service to the people of New York and to our country.”

So since the NRA and Obama both support Gillibrand, does that mean the NRA agrees with Obama?

Probably not, but interesting, don’t you think?

I suspect a few people at the NRA noticed this political anomaly because there has not been one word--no news release, no alert, nothing on the website--from gun groups about Senator Clinton’s pro-gun replacement.  You’d think the gun groups would be ecstatic about this turn of events. After all, Clinton received an “F” rating from the NRA ("F-" from GOA), but not one word of praise for the appointment.

I wonder why not?

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