American Hunters and Shooters Association (AHSA) Endorse Obama [ANTI-GUN FRONT GROUP]

AHSA is as much a "gun rights" organization as the Ku Klux Klan is a "civil rights" organization.

Here is what the NRA has to say about them.

http://www.nraila.org/Issues/FactSheets/Read.aspx?id=232&issue=011

AHSA was created with the specific intent to provide political cover for anti-gun politicians by allowing them to claim support from a “sportsmen’s” group. In truth, the anti-gun credentials of AHSA’s leadership is well documented. For instance, AHSA president Ray Schoenke has a long history of giving political donations to some of the most anti-gun politicians, including Al Gore, John Kerry, Barbara Boxer, Bill Clinton, Dianne Feinstein and Ted Kennedy. In 2000, Schoenke donated $5,000 to Handgun Control, Inc. (now the Brady Campaign) and the Ray and Holly Schoenke Foundation also made donations to the Brady Campaign. AHSA Board member John Rosenthal remains the leader of Stop Handgun Violence, the Massachusetts anti-gun group. And one of the leading organizers of AHSA is Bob Ricker, who has been a paid expert witness against gun manufacturers in a number of reckless lawsuits. (For more information, see Anti-Gunners Don Camo As Elections Loom.)

This from the Wall Street Journal:

http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB120821921853714665.html

Mr. Obama also backed a total ban on handguns, a move his campaign now says was the result of a rogue aide filling out a questionnaire. But Mr. Obama's own handwritten notes were found on the questionnaire, calling into question the campaign's version of what happened.

Please circulate this information as widely as possible. We Pennsylvanians who "cling to guns and religion" need to know that Obama's support for the Second Amendment is comparable to Dianne Feinstein's, Sarah Brady's and Hillary Clinton's. If we can tell as many people as possible that Obama's ads are outright lies, we can derail his candidacy.

What a load of hooey and Bravo Sierra. Formed 2 years ago specifically so Dems could have a "Gun" organization to say supports them.

Sorry demos, that dog don't hunt.

HEY, GUN OWNERS, I AM THE ONE I HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR.
...and, I know something that all you bitter rural, religious, right wing gun-toting folks don't know...

OBAMA'S CIRCLE OF FRIENDS AND SUPPORT

http://www.gunowners.org/op0624.htm

It’s just another Soros-sponsored front group.

...As a gun rights organization ...

Ha ha ha.. if the AHSA is a 'gun rights organization' then I am Donald Trump.

It is often a tip-off when hunting is used to explain support for the Second Amendment .

What’s their membership 50?

When this "news" first surfaced, I had to laugh at Barry's phoniness...
I don't think many MSM outlets have bothered to run with it because they know if they do, they'll be clobbered by real RKBA folk.

And not to forget “common sense” gun laws.

It is often a tip-off when hunting is used to explain support for the Second Amendment .

Exactly, if it was about hunting, then the Constitution should have also given us the rights to cooking pots and steak knives. Federalist 46 states it pretty clearly.

...Besides the advantage of being armed, which the Americans possess over the people of almost every other nation, the existence of subordinate governments, to which the people are attached, and by which the militia officers are appointed, forms a barrier against the enterprises of ambition, more insurmountable than any which a simple government of any form can admit of...

Baroque Obameter has got his head so far up his elitist bubble, if he thinks this kind of canard works on smart people.

Exactly...but he still will make a run at it and there will be some of the useful idiots that are fawning over him who will buy into it.

He hasn’t passed my lapel inspection either!

No soup for Barry!

April 16, 2008

The Fake "Gun Rights Group" Supporting Obama

ABC News reports that Barack Obama has collected the endorsement of a guns rights group, the American Hunters and Shooters Association:

"Sen. Obama will be a strong voice an unabashed voice for America's hunters and shooters and it is with great pleasure that we endorse his candidacy," President of the Association Ray Schoenke said, citing Obama's commitment to the traditions of gun ownership.
Schoenke said they had reached out to the Obama campaign several weeks ago to offer their support – but the announcement wasn't made public until today. Schoenke added that the timing amid the controversy was important.
"We believe recent attacks on Sen. Obama's stand on the 2nd amendment and his commitment to the hunting and shooting heritages are unfair."

Actually, it is Obama's record on firearms that is unfair to Americans, but don't expect Ray Schoenke to know much about gun rights, even if the Daily Kos diarist is the President of the American Hunters and Shooters Association (AHSA).

Schoenke, a failed Democratic candidate for governor of Maryland, has donated thousands to Handgun Control, Inc, a virulent anti-gun organization that was the forerunner of Brady Campaign To Prevent Gun Violence. He has donated tens of thousands more to anti-gun Democratic politicians including Ted Kennedy.

AHSA executive director Robert Ricker has testified as a paid witness against the gun industry and consults for several anti-gun groups, and John Rosenthal, President of the AHSA Foundation, is a former member of Sarah Brady's Handgun Control, Inc, and is leader of Stop Handgun Violence, a Massachusetts anti-gun group that has contributed to that state's intolerant anti-gun guns.

Just as Obama's record of claiming he is in favor of the Second Amendment even as he pushes for gun ban is dishonest, so is this endorsement from a trojan horse gun control organization masquerading as a group that respects American's rights to life and liberty.

Update: SayUncle examined this group earlier this year in greater detail. Posted by Confederate Yankee at April 16, 2008 04:05 PM

American Hunters and Shooters Association Screech

Posted by: SayUncle

You see, they are the righteous pro-hunting, pro-conservation, pro-gun group! The NRA betrays hunters at every turn. At least, that’s what they tell us. Behold Ray Schoenke’s screed at The Daily Kos. It’s so disjointed I can’t really fathom the point other than tooting the AHSA’s horn. Which is amazing, since they have no significant accomplishments nor significant membership that I know of. Only a screed with zero actual evidence about why they’re good and NRA is bad. So, let’s look at the American Hunters and Shooters Association record on guns:

The NSSF has a fact sheet on them here:

Reported in an article by Bill Schneideri that the operating budget for AHSA is $500,000. Where did this money come from? With only a handful of members (paying $25 dues) – who is bankrolling their operation?

When you follow the money, they read like a who’s who of gun grabbers. They are a front for the anti-gun Democratic Leadership Council so that anti-gun politicos can say they belong to a group that sounds pro-gun.

Members (five of them that they disclose) of the AHSA are anti-gun lobbyists.

They’re basically a shill group set up so that anti-gun candidates can try to woo the hunting crowd. Note that their only endorsement victory (McCaskill) did not sign on to support Heller.

AHSA wrote a non-opposition opposition to Heller for it’s wording.

The president allegedley helped a reporter break the law by engaging in straw purchases.

They pay people to stand outside NRA meetings to protest. Can’t get any volunteers with all your members?

They support they anti-gun Mayors Against Guns.

Field and Stream (you know, real hunters and real shooters) don’t seem to be a fan.

They keep peddling the Zumbo myth.

They call gun owners extremists and whackos. That’s correct. The Executive Director of a supposedly pro-gun group is calling those who buy weapons for self-defense (i.e., the largest growing demographic of gun owners) whackos. So, who exactly are the shooters in American Hunters and Shooters?

They say any woman who buys a gun is a sign of law-breaking.

Posted in Guns on February 29th, 2008 | RSS 2.0 | Both comments and pings are currently closed.

Jersey
Is the first part of that last post your own comments? If so, I would like to ‘steal’ those for a letter to the editor.

Not my comments, I copied verbatim from 2 blogs:

http://confederateyankee.mu.nu/
The Fake "Gun Rights Group" Supporting Obama

and

http://www.saysuncle.com/
American Hunters and Shooters Association Screech

The info needs to get out there, was just trying to spread the word on these scumbags.

ping

A typical ratscumbag trick. Four years ago frenchie tried to counter Catholics Against Kerry with Catholics 4 Kerry ( we grabbed up Catholics For Kerry before he pulled his little stunt) C4K didn’t work then. This mumbo jumbo from a bull shiite gun group won’t help barck mcgovern this cycle either.

I am rewording and sending this as a letter to the editor:
________________________________________________
Fake Gun Rights Group Supporting Obama

ABC News reports that Barack Obama has collected the endorsement of a guns rights group, the American Hunters and Shooters Association. At first, this sounds odd, considering that Mr. Obama has a very poor record of supporting our Second Amendment rights, favoring bans on the sale of all semi-automatic firearms, rifles, and shotguns. After some digging, it becomes clear why the American Hunters and Shooters Association endorsed Mr. Obama. The American Hunters and Shooters Association (AHSA) are not a ‘gun rights’ group as they claim, on the contrary, this organization has opposed our Second Amendment rights on every front. AHSA executive director Robert Ricker has testified as a paid witness against the gun industry and consults for several anti-gun groups. John Rosenthal, President of the AHSA Foundation, is a former member of Sarah Brady's Handgun Control, Inc, and is leader of Stop Handgun Violence, a Massachusetts anti-gun group that has contributed to that state's intolerant anti-gun guns.

Just as Mr. Obama’s record of claiming he is in favor of the Second Amendment even as he pushes for gun ban is dishonest, so is this endorsement from a trojan horse gun control organization masquerading as a group that respects American's rights to life and liberty.

This endorsement is just one more piece of evidence that we should verify all claims made by those who want our votes.

__________________________________________________________

Feel free to use.

Very good letter, Mr. Nehrling. Did I ever link you guys to a letter I wrote years back that got published regarding Frank Lautenberg’s gun-grabbing? If not, I’ll dig it up.