Participation in the NSSF Voter Education campaign by firearms retailers has never been more important. For just as the sportsmen’s voting bloc is the most influential in modern politics, the campaigns being leveled against pro-gun candidates have never been more devious.

“Gun control advocates are utilizing deception and stealth tactics in an attempt to splinter the sportsmen’s vote and advance their anti-gun agenda,” Keane said. “In years past, it was a lot easier to spot the camouflaged candidates — think John Kerry discussing his ‘crawling in the woods’ while deer hunting. Today, however, the anti-gun candidates are much more clever. They know how to camouflage their past votes and have even picked up our lingo, routinely talking of ‘bagging quail’ and ‘shoot’n limits.’”

As if retailers didn’t have a tough enough job, there are now camouflaged organizations such as the American Hunters and Shooters Association. The group purports to be pro-hunting, pro-conservation and pro-gun, but is led by a lobbyist for gun-control groups, who is also a paid witness testifying against members of the firearm industry in still-ongoing municipal lawsuits.

With added pressure on voters to determine which candidates are legitimately concerned with defending their firearms freedoms and which are not, retailers are in a great position to make a difference. By helping to educate and inform your customers about the candidates running for office, you can assist in keeping the sportsmen’s voting bloc alive and powerful.

You will send a clear message to anyone who walks through your doors that you’re not only looking to sell them a firearm, but also looking to secure their Second Amendment rights — rights that are inextricably linked to your livelihood.

Use The Tools

Though many of the players have changed, the game has not. Come election time, the goal of the gun-ban lobby remains to advance candidates by camouflaging political records, referring to themselves as “sportsmen” or “hunters” and making the same stale promises: “We’re not after your guns; we’re after the ‘illegal’ guns.”

Understanding this is certainly important, but even that’s not enough — not for someone in the business of selling firearms. It is imperative that firearm retailers educate themselves on today’s political landscape — including the voting records of political candidates — and help their customers get informed, too.

NSSF is giving you the tools through its Voter Education Web site: www.nssf.org/08election. Make sure you use it — and make sure your customers know about it, too.

At the 2007 SHOT Show, Fla., members of the hunting, shooting sports and firearms industry made a commitment to support the National Rifle Association of America, recognizing it to be the gun owner’s strongest political representative body. The NSSF has contributed significantly to the cause to help raise membership, but there are actions dealers can take.

First, hold a membership drive among your staff to make your company a “100 percent NRA member” business. Become an NRA Dealer and sell memberships directly from your store. Provide a link from your store’s Web site to NRA’s recruitment site: www.insureyourgunrights.com.

In addition, NRA has developed a discount plan that authorizes NRA Dealers to sell memberships for $25 and returns to you, the storeowner who recruited the new member, a $10 cash award. Participating in the NRA industry-driven recruitment campaign is not only good for the industry, for sportsmen and for preservation of the Second Amendment, but it is also good for your cash register.

For more information, visit www.insureyourgunrights.com, or contact NRA representative Andrea Myers at (703) 267-3759, e-mail: amyers@nrahq.org. 9

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