Gun control advocates from New York, Washington, DC, and Philadelphia poured hundreds of thousands of dollars into Pennsylvania in order to promote the Mike Bloomberg agenda & New York-style gun control in Tuesday’s elections. The good news is that NRA members spoke up and told him that we would not let him buy our elections for his political pets.
MAIG Mayor: John Callahan
In a surprising margin of 15 points, Bloomberg’s ally in Bethlehem went down to stinging defeat to NRA-endorsed Rep. Charlie Dent. Gun owners turned out big in this race thanks to the work of NRA’s campaign field representative program, and we made sure to protect our Congressman who stands up for the rights of the district’s sportsmen and gun owners. This seat was a priority for gun owners in Pennsylvania due to the outside funds flowing in to unseat Rep. Dent and replace him with an anti-gun extremist.
CeaseFire PA & Brady Campaign Voter Fund Backed: Bryan Lentz
What what expected to be one of the closest races in Pennsylvania resulted in an 11 point lead when gun owners worked to get out the vote for Pat Meehan who was endorsed by NRA. Lentz staked the end of his political career on calls for more gun control by trying to undermine concealed carry reciprocity and working with various anti-gun groups to advance their wishlist in the state house. Those groups were certainly hoping to bring that kind of cooperation up to Congress, but through the volunteer efforts of NRA members and other active gun owners, we made sure that his antics were stopped.
Bloomberg & CeaseFire PA Backed: Dan Onorato
Dan Onorato, no matter how many commercials he ran telling us how to say his name, couldn’t get any traction in his campaign. Even though he had an advantage of the most competitive primary back in March that resulted in more candidate forum appearances and news coverage, his campaign could not excite his Democratic base, independents, or crossover Republicans. In a desperate attempt to seem relevant again, Onorato jumped on board with Bryan Lentz’s crusade to attack gun owners. The nine point loss to NRA-endorsed Attorney General Tom Corbett who has a record of going after criminals who misuse guns speaks volumes as to how well that campaign tactic worked.
Bloomberg & Brady Backed: Joe Sestak
With the Brady Campaign actively campaigning for him, Mayor Bloomberg coming to Pennsylvania for him, and CeaseFire PA actively targeting his opponent, Joe Sestak was the poster child for the gun control representation in Pennsylvania’s 2010 elections. When debating Arlen Specter, Sestak wouldn’t even acknowledge self-defense as a lawful reason to own firearms – a position that clearly put him far out of the mainstream in legal circles and with voters. With NRA members turning out in droves to support Pat Toomey, we can now look forward to one more vote in the US Senate.
CeaseFire PA Backed: Paul Drucker
Once a proud supporter of CeaseFire’s extreme policies, Paul Drucker was sent back home by voters this week. During his short term, Rep. Drucker consistently voted against our self-defense rights in committee and on the floor. NRA members came out in support of his A- rated opponent, Warren Kampf, to drive him over the margin for victory. Gun owners in the district now have a friend of their rights in office to rally behind.
CeaseFire PA Backed: Rick Taylor
Defeating an incumbent is usually tough, but when NRA members know that their rights are on the line, they’ll turn out to get the job done against an anti-right lawmaker. When Rep. Taylor won by only 419 votes in 2008, there was an opportunity for a rematch. While NRA members didn’t know where Todd Stephens stood on their issue at the time, in 2010, we learned that he scored an A- on his questionnaire and earned the NRA’s endorsement. This year, we welcome Stephens to the legislature and look forward to his support.
CeaseFire PA Backed: Mark Painter
With no history on our issue, it was unknown early in the campaign whether or not Painter would stand up for what is right or reach out to gun control advocates. He opted to refuse any questions from NRA members and reached out to CeaseFire PA, a move that won him no love from gun rights advocates in his district. Rep. Tom Quigly has a record, and earned the support of NRA in this race. NRA members made sure to reward his support and sent Mr. Painter back home.
CeaseFire PA Backed: Shannon Meehan
Gun control groups cannot bring out the votes for candidates, even in suburban Philadelphia. Meehan learned that lesson when he went up against NRA-endorsed Rep. Nicholas Micozzie. Eager to make sure that their Second Amendment rights and outdoor heritage were protected, NRA members helped Rep. Micozzie cruise to victory this week.
Other Losses for Mayor Bloomberg
Earlier this year, gun owners in the 14th Senate District sent Bloomberg ally Tom Leighton back to his hometown in his Democratic primary. They made sure that the Senate seat remains in pro-gun hands by electing Rep. John Yudichak. In the same corner of the state, one MAIG mayor realized that his affiliation with the gun control group tied him to far more restrictive policies than he would otherwise support. (With a C rating from NRA, he still wouldn’t be considered a regular ally of gun owners.) Bill Goldsworthy dropped out of the group when he sought higher office, but it was not enough to overcome the incumbent in Tuesday’s general election. However, with one less mayor fighting to advance Mike Bloomberg’s extreme agenda, gun owners are still better off.
These aren’t the only losses suffered by Bloomberg, his new group Americans United for Safe Streets, his old group Mayors Against Illegal Guns, the other group he’s funding CeaseFire PA, and his ally the Brady Campaign. However, this is just a sample to illustrate what gun owners can do when we work together.
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