NBC News reports<\/a> spent over $5.4 million on federal lobbying last year, more than any other year in its history, and significantly more than the NRA. The NSSF, with a 60-year history of promoting hunting and recreational shooting, has emerged as the country\u2019s largest firearms trade association amid the NRA\u2019s struggles with declining membership, revenue and internal scandals, including a corruption ruling against its leader Wayne LaPierre.<\/p>\nUnlike the NRA, which focuses on individual gun owners as members, the NSSF represents gun manufacturers, retailers and business interests, focusing more on regulatory issues and maintaining partnerships with federal agencies, despite holding similar stances against universal background checks, red flag laws and mandatory safe storage of firearms among other anti-gun proposals. Some believe the NSSF\u2019s success is due to their ability to present a more pragmatic and less confrontational image than what NRA has come to be known for, yet still shares the NRA\u2019s hard-line positions on gun control. However, the NSSF emphasizes its commitment to safety and dialogue on firearms, distinguishing its approach from the NRA\u2019s.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe product is firearms, and there\u2019s no divorcing the politics from the product,\u201d Larry Keane, NSSF\u2019s general counsel and chief lobbyist, said in a recent interview with NBC News.<\/p>\n
NBC News notes that the group remains a \u201cstaunch defender of the Second Amendment,\u201d while at the same time striving to take a more pragmatic approach to dealing with issues \u201csimilar to business groups representing less controversial industries.\u201d<\/p>\n
The NSSF\u2019s growth and increased lobbying efforts come as the NRA faces significant cutbacks and internal turmoil. And while NRA\u2019s overall revenue and membership still dwarf the trade association, NSSF\u2019s expansion is notable amidst booming gun sales and a membership exceeding 10,000. Under the Biden administration, the NSSF has prioritized issues such as opposing the creation of a new merchant code for firearms purchases, which it argues could infringe on gun buyers\u2019 privacy and be misused for political purposes.<\/p>\n
Despite the NRA\u2019s challenges, it remains influential in electoral politics, bolstered by a vast membership and supporters across the country.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe NRA\u2019s influence has never stemmed from the salaries or expenditures,\u201d NRA spokesman McLaughlin said in a statement to NBC. \u201cIt comes from the millions of NRA members and supporters across the country who stand and fight, take action, and vote.\u201d<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the NSSF, as the growing face of the firearms industry, continues to strengthen its connections within the industry and government, evident in its annual SHOT Show, which continues to grow and is regularly attended by key Republican figures and federal officials, emphasizing its emerging role in shaping gun policy and advocacy in the United States.<\/p>\n
And while \u201cwho\u201d is the top gun-rights lobbyist in Washington could teeter back and forth in the coming years depending on how NRA emerges from its current woes, one thing is certain, both organizations will continue to play pivotal roles in the rights of millions of Americans who care about the Second Amendment.<\/p>\n
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\nNext Post Coming Soon…\u25b6\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Next Post Coming Soon…\u25b6 Long a bane of anti-gun politicians, Democrats (typically one and the same) and the mainstream media, the National Rifle Association (NRA) has been often blamed as well as credited, depending on which side of the issue a person falls on, with effectively stopping much of the legislation in Congress that would […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2943,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-2942","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-reviews"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gunsandpride.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2942","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gunsandpride.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gunsandpride.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gunsandpride.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gunsandpride.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2942"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/gunsandpride.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2942\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gunsandpride.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2943"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gunsandpride.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2942"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gunsandpride.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2942"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gunsandpride.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2942"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![\"2020](\"https:\/\/cdn0.thetruthaboutguns.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/2020SHOTShow-Floor.png\" "\\"2020")