Posted on 04/11/2009 11:10:06 AM PDT by marktwain
Previous articles noted that gun rights groups contribute very little money to federal election campaigns, and that there appears to be a link between law firm contributions and Nancy Pelosi’s support for firearms registration. Looking at the entire House of Representatives, pro-rights voting records and law firm contributions negatively correlate, meaning that as law firm money comprises a greater percentage of a candidate’s total campaign fund, the more likely they are to vote against the civil right of self-defense.
All winning 2008 House candidates’ campaign contributions (total and lawyer/law firm) were correlated with the National Rifle Association’s grading system (as an indicator of relative pro-rights voting records). The focus on winning House candidates is because only those winning a seat can vote, and it is the link between campaign contributions and voting records that need examining.
Since total campaign contributions varied from $117,097 for Bill Delahunt of Massachusetts to $7,353,034 for Colorado’s Jared Polis, the percent of total is a more accurate indicator of influence, assuming candidates are most beholden to those who gave them the greatest piece of their campaign pie. Races “cost” various amounts to win, based upon many factors such as rural versus urban, hotly-contested contests, etc. Law firm contributions comprised between 0.4% for Blaine Luetkemeyer of Missouri (NRA grade “A”) and 29.1% for Bruce Braley of Iowa (NRA grade “D-”). Total amounts are included for comparison purposes only.
Lawyer $ vs. NRA Grade NRA Grade Average Lawyer Total Percent of Total
A 60,595 4.2
B 83,083 5.1
C 80,481 5.4
D 142,021 7.4
F 100,064 7.3
C+ $80,880 5.5
When dividing House members into quintiles based upon the percent of lawyer contributions, the correlation becomes more dramatic: The lowest percent has the highest NRA grade; progressive quintiles have lower grades; the quintile with the lowest NRA grade is also the one where lawyer contributions comprise the highest percent of total campaign contributions.
Lawyer % of Total vs. NRA Grade Average Contribution Ave. % Total
Quintile Grade
1 A- 25,888 1.8%
2 B 45,458 3.4%
3 B- 70,269 4.8%
4 C- 102,204 6.5%
5 D 160,584 10.2%
Overall C+ 80,880 5.5%
When it comes to acting on convictions, the correlation increases. Recently, 65 House members sent a letter to Attorney General Eric Holder, asking him to abjure from pressing for a new “assault weapons” ban: [W]e would actively oppose any effort to reinstate the 1994 ban, or to pass any similar law. We urge you to abandon this initiative and to focus instead on effective enforcement strategies to enforce our current law against violent criminals and drug traffickers.
Overall, Democrat members of the house obtained 6.8% of their campaign contributions from lawyers and law firms. Those who signed this letter received 6.2% of their total from lawyers, while those who did not sign the letter averaged 7.0%.
Holder ‘Assault Weapons’ Letter Signers Average Total Average % Total Ratio to Party (%)
All Democrats 103,636 6.8 100.0
AWB Letter Signers 106,335 6.2 92.1
Non-Signers 102,691 7.0 103.0
Keep in mind that assault weapons were banned in 1934 and that any future bans are social engineering to make people comfortable with the government banning more firearms. Therefore, standing up to this initiative now is not about hardware but about civil rights.
Greater percentages of lawyer money correlates with less support for the civil right of self-defense. The question is: If the rest of us lose our rights, what will happen to the industry that contributes the most (lawyers and law firms) to federal campaign coffers?
References
Candidates’ NRA grade and campaign contributions collated from: Open Secrets and Political Victory Fund, Endorsement Archive, National Rifle Association. Email request for Excel spreadsheet.
******************************* For in-depth analysis of who truly influences gun control policy in Washington, read Howard’s book Four Hundred Years of Gun Control: Why Isn’t It Working?, which deconstructs the gun control agenda and motivates more people to support our civil right of self-defense.
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Lawyer $ vs. NRA Grade
|
||
|
NRA Grade
|
Average Lawyer Total
|
Percent of Total
|
|
A
|
60,595
|
4.2
|
|
B
|
83,083
|
5.1
|
|
C
|
80,481
|
5.4
|
|
D
|
142,021
|
7.4
|
|
F
|
100,064
|
7.3
|
|
C+
|
$80,880
|
5.5
|
|
Lawyer % of Total vs. NRA Grade
|
|||
|
Average
Contribution
|
Ave. %
Total
|
||
|
Quintile
|
Grade
|
||
|
1
|
A-
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25,888
|
1.8%
|
|
2
|
B
|
45,458
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3.4%
|
|
3
|
B-
|
70,269
|
4.8%
|
|
4
|
C-
|
102,204
|
6.5%
|
|
5
|
D
|
160,584
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10.2%
|
|
Overall
|
C+
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80,880
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5.5%
|
|
Holder ‘Assault Weapons’ Letter Signers
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|||
|
|
Average
Total |
Average
% Total |
Ratio to
Party (%) |
|
All Democrats
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103,636
|
6.8
|
100.0
|
|
AWB Letter Signers
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106,335
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6.2
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92.1
|
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Non-Signers
|
102,691
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7.0
|
103.0
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The second amendment has absolutely nothing to do with the “...civil right of self defense.” It has everything to do with the God given right of defending oneself from and eventually doing away with an abusive, criminal form of government. More people need to understand this vital fact. The left has falsely made the issue of “self defense” the cornerstone of the 2nd amendment battle, maintaining that guns removed from the public will solve the problem of street “violence”. We must not let them get away with this phoney ploy. Our right to keep and bear arms exists as our protection against the tyranny of the state.
A look at what gun-owners are doing wih their money may be in order. When you can't find a .22LR round at Wal-Mart, sumpin's up.
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