The antigunners allies at ThinkProgress and Media Matters are claiming that the NRA’s endorsements don’t mean that much:
“… The organization’s stamp of approval, it is believed, not only sends a clear message to Americans who own guns, but brings with it indispensable grassroots organizing muscle that can make all the difference in House and Senate races … Many interest groups endorse candidates, but it is fair to say that few find their endorsements as eagerly sought as the National Rifle Association. And there may be a few races here or there in which an NRA endorsement has a meaningful impact on an election’s outcome. But it seems clear that those cases are few and far between …”
The antis are really getting desperate if they’re peddling this. If gun owner endorsements didn’t matter candidates would not seek them out. In just the past couple of weeks I’ve gotten:
- 3 fundraising invitations from incumbent state legislators
- 1 invitation to a re-election campaign kickoff for an incumbent state legislator
- 1 fundraising invitation from a Congressional candidate
- 1 request for a candidate questionnaire from a state legislative candidate
- 1 request for an endorsement from an incumbent county office holder
This is probably more love than the sum total all of the antigun groups nationwide have gotten from ’12 candidates thus far. The antis aren’t even talking about elections anymore. They’re in hysterics over the abject failure of their Starbucks boycott. This is why their legislative agenda is failing. Politicians don’t see the antis as being willing or able to back up their positions at election time.