Posted on 08/09/2010 6:54:50 PM PDT by randita
NRA chooses Edwards in Texas By: Kasie Hunt August 9, 2010 06:57 PM EDT
Texas Rep. Chet Edwards is the latest endangered Democrat to win a critical conservative credential: an endorsement from the National Rifle Association.
Edwards’s campaign announced he had received the pro-gun rights organization’s backing on Monday. "I cannot imagine any candidate in our district who would not want the endorsement of the NRA Victory Fund, which is by far the largest gun rights organization in the country,” Edwards spokesman Megan Jacobs said in a statement.
Edwards is facing self-funded businessman Bill Flores, who has attacked him for voting in favor of the bank bailout and the stimulus bill.
“Bill Flores is a strong supporter of the 2nd amendment, filled out a perfect NRA questionnaire that received an AQ rating, is a life member of the NRA and the Texas State Rifle Association and has already been endorsed by Gun Owners of America. Bill will never receive an F rating from the NRA as Congressman Edwards did in 2003,” said Flores campaign manager Matt Mackowiak.
Edwards has been a GOP target for nearly a decade and has yet to lose a race—even though former President George W. Bush calls his district home.
Still, the national political environment is working against him, and Republicans have been quick to note Flores’s internal polling shows him ahead.
Both Edwards and Flores raised over $600,000 between April and June, though Edwards is sitting on more than $2.1 million in cash to Flores’s $415,000.
That makes the NRA endorsement all the more welcome—and Edwards isn’t the only vulnerable Democrat to win NRA support this year. Mississippi Rep. Travis Childers and Virginia Rep. Rick Boucher also have the group’s backing, a welcome endorsement for both.
Ties with conservative congressional Democrats have been key for the NRA. The group’s influence allowed it to negotiate a loophole in sweeping campaign finance legislation designed to limit outside groups’ influence in elections. The bill, dubbed the DISCLOSE Act, didn’t pass muster in the Senate.
But the NRA has taken flak from its conservative membership for supporting candidates on the left— and has been particularly roiled by suggestions it would endorse endangered Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. The group ultimately issued a statement saying it had not yet made a decision about whether to endorse Reid.
© 2010 Capitol News Company, LLC
It’s become fashionable to criticize the NRA around here any time they endorse a Democrat candidate. Think about the alternative though. Would it be better if the NRA rubber stamped every Republican? The NRA would quickly become irrelevant, as Republicans took it for granted and did what they want, and Democrats stopped worrying about being pro-gun, since they’d never get an NRA endorsement no matter what they did.
If the NRA is going to influence politics, they have to play politics. Clearly they do make some mistakes from time to time. But I would rather the NRA keep a tight focus on the 2nd ammendment, and let people research other issues for themselves.
You just have to keep in mind that when two candidates are about equal on gun rights, the NRA will choose the incumbent, ie the “known quantity” over the new guy.
By the way, I just looked up Chet Edwards and he voted “no” on the obamacare bill, for what it’s worth.
"The NRA has done more to UNDERMINE the constitution than George Soros"
I don't quite buy that statement... You don't have to agree with the NRA 100%, but they are not an enemy to freedom loving Americans.
no? see posts 53, 55 and 60. do your damn homework.
No need to get testy. Here is the link to the roll call vote on obamacare in the House, if you want to see for yourself. http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2009/roll887.xml
By the way, I said “for what it’s worth”. I’m not endorsing Chet Edwards, and I don’t live in his district, so I don’t have a vote anyway.
sorry, not testy. I’m to old to be testy! but check out the grover norquist/nra/C.A.I.R angle. you will not like what you find tho kam if you are an nra fan. the nra was once the greatest org. in America.....then came their 1968 votes/support.... and from there.......right down the darn drain. stay safe.
I haven’t heard of an NRA link to CAIR. I’ll check into it.
I still think the NRA comes down on the right side of issues most of the time, though they did screw up lately trying to get themselves a loophole in that anti-free speech law instead of opposing it outright.
Honestly there are precious few organizations effectively fighting for freedom these days. The left has a lock on unions, teachers, TV and print media, movies, AARP, the Bar Association etc etc..
If anything I’ll continue to support the NRA because it drives liberals crazy. And that gives me a warm fuzzy.
okay, each to his own kam. I’m an old timer and boy if someone had told me years back I would be speaking of the nra in a bad light......well, no way in hell. (’68 changed things tho). BUT....things are diff. now. if you can handle the ‘new’ nra in bed with the muslim terrorist front group C.A.I.R. then well I guess that is your call. again, each to his own. a group who now supports C.A.I.R....by allowing a main board member to be involved with them....for YEARS!!!well...your call. myself? any org. aligned with C.A.I.R can flat go to you no where. soldiers who gave their lives for our country, those old nra member soldiers, must be twisting in their graves seeing what has happened to the nra. it is a new day now I guess. the younger kids have no idea what the nra once was and I am sad for that. they were the best pre ‘68.
Well that is disappointing if an NRA board member supports CAIR. I’ll need some time to search up on it but if true I’ll be sending the NRA a letter.
Though I’d have to say the NRA is more than just it’s board members. They come and go. The way I see it, the NRA is mostly millions of average Joes who want to be left alone by the government. If enough members get upset at the leadership I think we can still change things from the inside.
We might disagree on which gun rights org is the best but I think we’re on the same side when it comes to the second amendment and the constitution.
1)Edwards is pro-gun? GOA gives him a “D”. “Leans Anti-Gun: usually against us. “ Edwards doesn’t believe in the second amendment. Neither I guess does the NRA which endorses numerous candidates that get crap ratings from the GOA.
2)You can’t ignore the Speaker (and by extension committee chairs) vote. I could only except them backing a rat if the rat was actually more conservative than the Republican on guns. It’s absurd for them to endorse an incumbent to left of his challenger on guns just because said incumbent is a rat and they want to be “bipartisan”. There is no defense for this.
I urge all not to donate to the NRA. They work against their own interest by backing Edwards and helping him out with your membership dues.
http://www.billfloresforcongress.com/
http://www.billfloresforcongress.com/protect2nd
https://billfloresforcongress.uscontributions.com/
Bill Flores is the choice for 2A supporters. Edwards is the choice for liberals and stupid people who believe liars who call themselves conservative. Shame on the NRA for helping Edwards fool people.
FY NRA!
“The NRA has been extremely successful in what it does… supporting gun ownership. Every two years they restate: The NRA is not a political organization… political party has nothing to do with the decision… nor do other issues have anything to do with the decision... the NRA is a single issue organization.”
You said it.
To repeat the concept for the benefit of the forum:
Democrats in pro-gun areas vote avoid anti-gun votes because of this NRA policy. It is the consistency of the NRA policy that makes it effective.
For example, Chet has a risk decision with each vote: (1) vote pro-gun, take the hit from the liberal Ds, but retain NRA endorsement; or (2) vote anti-gun, gain more liberal support, but lose NRA endorsement.
If the NRA endorsement was not assured to an incumbent, then Chet’s risk analysis would not weigh as much for option (1), and Chet would be less likely to vote pro-gun.
The Texas State RA has a similar policy for the same reasons.
Did this guy vote for obamacare?
If he did, the NRA is doing more harm to the 2A than good, as obamacare will inevitably make firearms a “public health threat” somewhere down the road.
Not one more dime for the NRA from me.
NRA- 9% support for dems in 2002 to 26% in 2008 (and rising!):
http://liveshots.blogs.foxnews.com/2010/07/26/pro-gun-dems-may-get-a-boost/
Nor can it afford to be.
It is a pro-gun organization and it backs the incumbent if the incumbent has a good pro-gun vote record.
This endorsement by the NRA is idiotic. I could see how an unprincipled organization like the NRA would endorse a slightly pro-gun Democrat over a 100% pro-gun Republican in a safely Democrat district because (i) the Republican won’t win anyways and (ii) endorsing the Democrat may help nudge him to vote pro-gun once in a while and allows the NRA to brag about their non-partisanship (as if it was the NRA’s fault that Democrats are all either gun-grabbers or enablers of gun-grabbers like Pelosi). However, pro-gun Republican Bill Flores not only can beat Chet Edwards, he probably will defeat him, even with the NRA endorsing Edwards. What a bunch of maroons.
The NRA wants to be seen as all-inclusive. We have seen how that has fared with RINO after RINO.
http://liveshots.blogs.foxnews.com/2010/07/26/pro-gun-dems-may-get-a-boost/
I think the NRA is run by idiots, and I am as Pro-Gun as they come.
—thank you—as you are the other grown-up on this thread who wasn’t born yesterday, you have stated what needed to be-—
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