Gun Rights Group Candidate Endorsements

I got to wondering how the two main gun rights groups would handle endorsements this time around. Their candidate ratings are usually no surprise. If there's anything interesting it's the two groups having different ratings for the same candidate.

Starting with the state assembly race, the National Rifle Association didn't see fit to bother rating either candidate (???). The NRA state affiliate, California Rifle and Pistol Association, doesn't seem to have any election information of any kind that I could find.

Gun Owners of California(pdf file), the state affiliate of Gun Owners of America, did rate them with Democrat Wes Chesbro getting his usual F and Democrat Tom Lynch apparently not returning their questionnaire.That earns him the quizzical ?.

It's not unusual for candidates to get the ? or, as the GOA does it, N/R. Sometimes it's deliberate. Why answer a questionnaire when you're not going to fare well on it? Sometimes they claim to have not received it.

For Congress, the NRA rates Democrat Jared Huffman an expected F and Republican Dan Roberts a surprise ?. GOA a gives Huffman a D and Roberts another N/R. Hmmm??? Wonder why GOA would give Huffman a better grade than NRA did? Usually they're tougher with ratings.

As far as Roberts' N/R, maybe he felt getting a good rating on gun rights might hurt him in this district so didn't bother? Maybe he just never saw it, but hard to believe he missed both surveys.

In the U.S. Senate, long time gun rights opponent Dianne Feinstein earned another F from both the NRA and GOA. Republican Elizabeth Ekmen scored an A from the NRA based on her questionnaire answers but an N/R from GOA. Looks like she tried to make an effort at responding, anyway.

And now the question we've all been waiting for (and the main reason I was curious about the gun rights ratings), how did they rate the candidates for President? I didn't find what I was looking for. I couldn't find any rating for Presidential candidates on the GOA web site. The NRA simply posted that they endorse Romney/Ryan.

What??? They didn't even give either of them a grade and no mention of Obama as they've done in the past. What's with that?

If memory serves me correct, Obama received a D or an F from one or both of the groups during the 2008 election. That was based on his voting record as a U.S. Senator. Obama hasn't signed any anti- gun legislation as President, but Romney has signed anti- gun legislation as Governor of Massachusetts.

Maybe that's the reason for the NRA is trying to rush right over any comparison between the two? As a Life Member of the NRA, I can say there is an unwritten loyalty agreement between the NRA and the Republican Party. Same with GOA, but usually the GOA is a little better about being honest in comparisons.

No mention of either of any pro- gun third party candidates, either. Both Gary Johnson and Constitution Party candidate, Virgil Goode, are strongly pro- gun rights. Then again, this is par for the course with those groups. I'm disappointed as usual, but not surprised.