The New Gun Week is not kind to Republican presidential contender Mitt Romney's attempts to win over gunmakers by attending the annual SHOT (Shooting, Hunting, Outdoor Trade) Show, the annual trade show for America's gun industry. As one pro-gun activist cited in the article put it, "Romney was a liberal Republican for years. Now that he wants to be President he's trying to shine up his conservative credentials. Gay marriage? Yes back then. No now. Guns? No then. Yes now. Hypocrite? Maybe then. Certainly now." Having myself been an attendee at far too many SHOT Shows, I would have been surprised if the response had been anything otherwise.
Without doubt, the SHOT Show--where America's gun manufacturers, distributors, and dealers meet to sell and be sold--is a tough room. But what would you expect from the annual confab of America's gunmakers, an event with more than 1,800 exhibitors (gun and non-gun) and a total attendance of more than 42,000? Closed to the general public, the show--usually held in Las Vegas, but now and then planted in some other gun-friendly locale, this year, Orlando--is sponsored by the National Shooting Sports Foundation, the official trade association for the gun industry. (Held at the same time as the SHOT Show this year in the same complex was Surf Expo, which offered a contrast in attendees that reportedly could not, well, be easily ignored.) Romney's campaign staff was said to have set up the event so that he could be photographed gazing adoringly at guns with the NSSF's Larry Keane and NRA Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre. Clearly, if Romney was going to make a strategic break with his "anti-gun" past (support for the Brady Law and the now-expired federal assault weapons ban) what better place to do it? Where else can a candidate in search of pro-gun photo ops have the opportunity to peer through the scope of a 50 caliber sniper rifle, cradle an assault weapon, and embrace the handgun of his choice--all in the same aisle?
As awkward, cynical, and open to scorn as Romney's attempt is--a prize that should have been retired with John Kerry's ham-handed grouse hunting jaunt during the 2004 campaign--the equally interesting question is why were the NSSF's Keane and the NRA's LaPierre willing to serve as escorts to Romney as he made his debut at this pro-gun cotillion? The answer is that in the wake of the November elections, and in preparation for the 2008 vote, the gun lobby is looking for any opportunity to show its strength and staying power--even at the risk of offending the very people who comprise it. As a press release issued by the NSSF heralding Romney's attendance at the show stated, "Gov. Romney's tour of the SHOT Show underscores the continued importance of the sportsmen's and gun owners' vote in national elections. Sportsmen and gun owners have proven to be a vital and influential voting bloc in the past two presidential elections and in each of the congressional elections since 2000." The release quoted Romney as stating, "Americans should have the right to own and possess firearms as guaranteed under the U.S. Constitution. I'm proud to be among the many decent, law-abiding men and women who safely use firearms."
A little ring-kissing by an errant candidate may work for LaPierre and Keane, but is it enough for the activist core they rely upon when a little muscle flexing is necessary? Not so much. And if the gun lobby's leadership is willing to cozy up to Romney, what does that mean when leading Republican candidates Senator John McCain and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani come calling? Both are widely viewed as traitors and turncoats among the pro-gun grassroots the NRA--and the Republican party--rely upon. And unlike Democrats, pro-gun activists aren't going to hold their noses and actively work in support of an uninspiring candidate--let alone one they loathe--just for the promise of a win. They're going to sit home and punish the organizations and party they feel betrayed them.
If the "Romney Standard" is going to define the attitude of the gun lobby's power elite toward candidates with questionable pro-gun records over the next two years, the NRA and NSSF had better brace themselves for an all out mutiny.