I’m back home for a day before I head back out on the road. Wanted to get up a post about my trip to Minnesota. I was heading there to speak to hunters about Obama, mainly because Todd Palin was going to be there doing the same thing for his side.
On my way to Minnesota, who did I see at the Detroit airport? Todd Palin. Did I go talk introduce myself to him? You betcha. I want him to know that his side doesn’t have the exclusive on talking to gun owners this year.
Most of the articles about Todd mentioned the gun owners who support Obama, too. That’s exactly what we wanted.
The reaction in Northern Minnesota was very positive.
I did several stops, met with sportsmen for Obama and did quite a few t.v,, newspaper and radio interviews. I had a good talk with the Bemidji Pioneer. and had to love the headline, "American Hunters and Shooters Association founder: Obama will protect gun rights."
Little did I know when I started AHSA a couple years ago, that we’d have a headline in the Bemidji Pioneer. I’m going to excerpt part of the article because, to be honest, it reads just like what I’ve been writing in my diaries here at Daily Kos:
Schoenke said his AHSA is an alternative to the NRA for "gun rights, respect of the rights, that every law-abiding citizen can own a gun, but with those rights come civic responsibilities, and a huge commitment to land and conservation of our natural resources."
The NRA is totally lacking on policy for land conservation, he said.
"The NRA, in order to win this battle, in order to get McCain (elected), they want to scare, frighten gun owners into believing Obama is going to take away your guns," he said. "That dog doesn’t hunt."
While the McCain campaign points out Obama’s record "with a microscope," Schoenke said the same could be true about McCain. He cited the NRA’s listing of McCain as "Enemy No. 1" in 2001 for his support of background checks at gun shows.
"McCain and the NRA were at each other’s throats," he said. "When the McCain-Feingold (campaign finance reform) bill came out, they were adamantly against him."
The NRA, meanwhile, likes to label the AHSA as "the enemy in camouflage."
"But what the hell are they? Unless you’re a conservative right winger, you cannot own a gun?" Schoenke asks. "Of course, Democrats own guns. Moderates own guns."
Schoenke said AHSA "doesn’t believe in unfettered, unimpeded, unregulated access to guns. We believe that only law-abiding citizens should have the right to own a gun, and with that right goes civic responsibility, which means we don’t want terrorists and criminals and people who harm themselves get guns. We want to do everything we can to make sure that doesn’t happen."
The group also has a "huge commitment to conservation, which really separates us from the NRA, as the NRA is horrible when it comes to conservation issues," he said. "They’re a one-issue organization. They’re all gun rights."
The NRA claims to represent all 80 million gun owners in the U.S., but Schoenke said there is a wide gap between gun-banners and the NRA’s wide open stance, and that gun owners wanted an alternative to the NRA.
"The gun rights issue is behind us and conservation is important," he said. "Obama is ahead of McCain, and I think he’s clearly ahead when it comes to the economy. That’s why I strongly urge hunters and shooters throughout Minnesota to look to Obama and support him."
I have a good feeling a lot of hunters and shooters in Minnesota will be supporting Obama.
I’m heading to Ohio this week for more campaigning. Just over two weeks to go – none of us can let up. And, I’ll say what I’ve said before: Obama is talking to gun owners – and they’re listening.