A Strong and Consistent Voice

"Congressman Chet Edwards is a strong and consistent voice for freedom and for defending the rights of Texas gun owners, hunters and sportsmen,” said Chris W. Cox, chairman for the NRA Political Victory Fund.

Yep, here's the rating and endorsement.

That must be why Chet supports this guy, you know, the guy we're told will be "the most anti-gun president in American history."

That doesn't even shave a point off the "A" rating?

And why does GOA give Chet a "D"? Some would tell us it's because they're NRA wannabe malcontents who exist by siphoning off funds from our true gun rights leaders. Is there any objective way we can see which rating should have more credibility?

Well, Chet's opponent, Rob Curnock (rated "AQ"*), is none too happy, claiming:

“The NRA gave Edwards a grade of A, but a few years ago they gave him an F,” Curnock said. “It goes up and down. If it’s an election year he does what he needs to do to make the votes to get their support. But, if you look at his overall record, Edwards consistently votes against many of the key values the NRA espouses.

“He voted for the Brady Bill, voted to restrict gun magazine clip sizes. That’s one of the perks of being a longtime incumbent, but his voting record is very spotty.”

Not quite. I'm not saying he didn't, but I can't find where he voted for the Brady Bill. But what kind of spots are on his record? How "strong and consistent" has his "voice" been?

He voted the Brady way:

• For final passage of "campaign finance reform."

• Against the "Pickering Amendment to provide exception for gun lobby campaign ads."

• Against "reducing the amount of time for law enforcement to conduct background checks on gun sales."

• For the McCarthy/Blagojevich/Roukema "Mandatory Gun Show Background Check Act."

• Against "Final Passage of H.R. 2122...now including the weakened gun show background check amendment and the reinstatement of the pawn shop redemption exemption."

• Against "Repeal of the Assault Weapons Ban."

• For "The Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, containing a ban on semi-automatic assault weapons and a ban on juvenile possession of handguns."

• For "Public Safety and Recreational Firearms Use Protection Act) that bans the manufacture, transfer, or possession of semi-automatic assault weapons. This measure is similar to the amendment to the Senate-passed crime bill, sponsored by Senator Dianne Feinstein."

• Against the "McCollum Amendment...to the Brady Bill...that would have preempted all state and local gun laws when the national instant check system went into effect."

• Against the Volkmer/Sensenbrenner Amendment, that would have deleted "a provision banning the manufacture of 22 semi-automatic assault weapons and large capacity ammunition magazines (over 7 rounds)" from The Omnibus Crime Control Act of 1991.

That's some "strong and consistent voice," Mr. Cox.

See, NRA is into access. And they're into backing incumbents who look like sure winners, so they can claim electoral success in races they back. That's the only guarantee you have on how the dollars you donate to PVF will be used.

Does anybody seriously think Chet Edwards will deny President Obama's call to ban "assault weapons"?

But if we don't continue to follow along, it will be our fault. Besides, questioners are just "principle freaks."

And we wonder why we're in the mess we're in, and how we got to this point with such poor choices, as if years of this MO don't give us a clue. Is anybody else sick and damned tired of being played like this?

* (Federal Candidates Only) A pro-gun candidate whose rating is based solely on the candidate’s responses to the 2008 NRA-PVF Candidate Questionnaire and who does not have a voting record on Second Amendment issues.