HCI BLOWS ELECTION ANALYSIS AGAIN
<align=center>WHILE IGNORING EMBARRASSING LOSSES
The gun-ban lobby formerly known as HCI continues to embarrass itself during this campaign season with outlandish statements and a policy of ducking its head in the sand whenever it suffers losses. Earlier this month, one of the extremist organization’s most ardent supporters, U.S. Representative Lynn Rivers (D-Mich.), lost her primary election to U.S. Representative John Dingell (D-Mich.), a pro-gun legend in Congress. The Second Amendment was a major theme in this race. Afterwards, the organization made one brief, ridiculous comment about the pro-gun winner needing to adopt the anti-gun loser’s position on guns, and has since acted as if the race never took place.
HCI has also been caught "whistling past the graveyard" in Georgia. An HCI press release "hailed the defeat" of U.S. Representative Bob Barr, even though he lost to a candidate—U.S. Representative John Linder—who has a voting record HCI should find abysmal by its prohibitive standards. Considering Linder’s pro-gun voting record, and the fact that gun control was never really an issue in the Barr-Linder race, no one can really believe HCI can be so happy about the election results.
Meanwhile, HCI once again remains silent after losing another supporter. U.S. Representative Cynthia McKinney (D-Ga.), a high-profile lawmaker who consistently receives an "F" from NRA-PVF, was defeated in her primary by relatively unknown Denise Majette (D-Ga.). While we don’t know all of Majette’s positions when it comes to "gun control," her website states she does "respect the 2nd Amendment rights of all citizens who want to carry and use firearms in an appropriate and lawful manner." Perhaps these are merely hollow words, but we cannot recall McKinney ever making a similar statement that could be remotely construed as being pro-gun. As with Lynn Rivers, though, HCI has failed to acknowledge the loss of McKinney, one of its most consistent supporters. Perhaps the group holds the position, "out of sight, out of mind."
MORE ELECTIONS AROUND THE CORNER
Alaska
and Oklahoma will hold primary elections this Tuesday, August 27. NRA members should have already received information on candidates endorsed by the NRA-Political Victory Fund (NRA-PVF) for the primaries, so please be sure to go to the polls and support pro-gun candidates for office, and encourage your family, friends, and fellow firearm owners to do the same. NRA members in these states who have not received this information can call the NRA-ILA Grassroots Division at (800) 392-VOTE (8683) for more election-related information.
NRA-ILA GRASSROOTS
<align=center>ELECTION WORKSHOPS
In preparation for the upcoming campaign season, NRA-ILA has scheduled FREE Grassroots-Election Workshops across the country. These Workshops provide NRA members with training on what they can do to ensure pro-gun candidates win during key primary races and on Election Day, Nov. 5. These Workshops also provide a venue for lawmakers, candidates seeking office, and their staffs to reach out to NRA members and explain their positions on our Right to Keep and Bear Arms.
Upcoming Workshops are slated for:
Mesquite, Tex. — 8/24
San Antonio, Tex. — 8/26
Pontiac, Mich., & Medford, Ore. — 8/27
Salt Lake City, Utah — 8/28
Spokane, Wash. — 9/5
Sioux Falls, S.D., & Omaha, Neb. — 9/7
Aberdeen, S.D. — 9/9
Davenport, Iowa — 9/10
Ames, Iowa — 9/12
South Bend, Ind. — 9/14
Dayton, Ohio — 9/16
Augusta, Ga., & Lehigh Valley, Pa. — 9/17
Marietta, Ga., & Wyomissing, Pa. — 9/18
Fayetteville, N.C. — 9/19
Charlotte, N.C., & Manchester, N.H. — 9/21
Nashville, Tenn. — 9/23
St. Louis, Mo. — 9/24
Jackson, Tenn., & Columbia, Mo. — 9/25
Kansas City, Mo. — 9/26
Bristol, Va. — 9/28
Las Vegas, Nev., & Norwich, Conn. — 10/5
NRA members who are interested in attending should contact the NRA-ILA Grassroots Division at (800) 392-8683 for details and to reserve their spots. NRA members can also click here to reserve their spots on-line.
Even if you cannot attend a Workshop, or none is scheduled near you, there is still plenty you can do to help ensure victory for the pro-gun community during this election cycle. To assist you with this, NRA-ILA has designated an individual in virtually every congressional district (known as an NRA-ILA Election Volunteer Coordinator [EVC]) who stands ready to plug you in with ongoing campaign activities. The EVC in your district is a fellow NRA member who is working to provide pro-gun campaigns in your state and area with volunteers to help with phone banks, literature drops, voter registration drives, precinct walks, and other campaign activities. To locate your EVC so you can start working on pro-freedom campaigns today, you may call the ILA Grassroots at (800) 392-VOTE (8683), or click here. I f your district currently has a vacancy for an EVC, and you would like to serve in this capacity, please call the NRA-ILA Grassroots Division and ask to speak with the Grassroots Coordinator for your state. Finally, keep an eye out for your October NRA magazine (which should arrive by late-September), as your district’s EVC’s contact information will appear on the front cover. But please don’t wait until then: Contact your EVC and begin your work TODAY!
ATTEND TOWN HALL MEETINGS
Congress remains on vacation during its Summer District Work Period—with the House recess scheduled to run until Sept. 5, and the Senate’s until Sept. 2. Please contact your lawmakers’ district offices and ask if or when they plan to hold town hall meetings during the recess. If you do not know the number for your lawmakers’ district offices, you can use our "Write Your Representatives" tool, or call the NRA-ILA Grassroots Division at (800) 392-8683.
In addition to attending meetings and speaking out in support of our Right to Keep and Bear Arms (remember to specifically promote S. 2554 and H.R. 4635—the armed pilots bills—and S. 2268 and H.R. 2037—the reckless lawsuit preemption bills), please forward the dates, times, and locations of any town hall meetings to your family members and friends who support the Second Amendment, and to the NRA-ILA Grassroots Division, so we may share this information with the pro-gun community. Please forward this information to the Grassroots Division by calling our toll-free number, faxing to (703) 267-3918, or by sending an e-mail to [email protected].
You can find listings of the town hall meetings we know about by clicking here.
A LOOK AT THE STATES
ARIZONA:
Early voting for the September 10 primary elections is underway and will continue through August 30. If you don’t have a ballot and want to vote early, please contact your county Recorder’s office to request a ballot application. NRA members can contact the NRA-ILA Grassroots Division at (800) 392-8683 for information on the pro-gun candidates in their areas. For state-specific voting information, call the Arizona Secretary of State’s Office at (602) 542-4285.
NORTH CAROLINA:
Your calls made the difference in North Carolina! H.B. 622, the NRA-backed measure to stop reckless lawsuits against firearm manufacturers, has been signed into law by Governor Michael Easley (D). This law prevents municipalities from filing politically-motivated lawsuits that attempt to hold gun makers liable for the criminal misuse of their lawful products. NRA members must make sure that Governor Easley is thanked for his approval of this critical piece of legislation. Please call Governor Easley at (919) 733-5811, and thank him for putting an end to frivolous local lawsuits against the gun industry! Be sure to make this important phone call today!
