NSSF Releases Annual Report Card on Members of Congress
The National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) this week released its 2022 Congressional Report Card, grading all 430 sitting U.S. Representatives (as of Aug. 8) and 100 U.S. Senators on key legislation that is of critical importance to the firearm industry, Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens and America’s hunters and target shooters. Five U.S. House of Representatives were not graded due to special elections to fill vacancies and have no key legislative record to review.
Read the 2022 U.S. HOUSE & U.S. SENATE Report Card »
CLICK HERE for the entire 2022 U.S. House and U.S. Senate NSSF Report Card, including the list of key legislation that comprised the scores.
“This scorecard is of vital importance to voters as we head into November elections. This tells voters exactly where their lawmakers stand on issues they care about like recreational shooting and hunting and the right to keep and bear arms,” said Lawrence G. Keane, NSSF Senior Vice President and General Counsel. “This nonpartisan scorecard reflects the voting record of each legislator. These grades indicate their public voting record as well as their sponsoring and co-sponsoring key legislation, their work on committees, letters signed to support issues and leadership to support our industry.”
NSSF awarded 32 U.S. Senators and 116 U.S. Representatives the highest rating of “A+.” This includes U.S. Sens. John Boozman (R-Ark.), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa.), John Hoeven (R-N.D.), John Kennedy (R-La.), James Lankford (R-Okla.), Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and Tim Scott (R-S.C.). These senators are all running for re-election in 2022. All U.S. House of Representatives seats will be voted upon in November.
Grades are meant to analyze the level of support of each lawmaker during the 117th Congress and do not constitute an endorsement or opposition to a candidate’s election.
Commentary — The Deep Division Between Parties
For Ammoland, Dave Workman analyzed the NSSF’s 2022 Congressional Report Card. It did not look good for the Dems. Workman notes that the vast majority of Democrats received failing grades:“The six-page NSSF report card is a devastating illustration of the political chasm between the parties on the subject of guns and Second Amendment rights.
According to Mark Oliva, NSSF Public Affairs director, ‘NSSF awarded 32 U.S. Senators and 116 U.S. Representatives the highest rating of ‘A+’. This includes U.S. Sens. John Boozman (R-Ark.), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa.), John Hoeven (R-N.D.), John Kennedy (R-La.), James Lankford (R-Okla.), Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and Tim Scott (R-S.C.). These senators are all running for re-election in 2022. All U.S. House of Representatives seats will be voted upon in November.’
There are 40 ‘F’ grades in the U.S. Senate, not a single one earned by a Republican. Independent Bernie Sanders earned an ‘F’, while only a single Democrat — Sen. Joe Manchin of W.VA. — earned an ‘A’.
Democrat Senators Jon Tester of Montana and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona both garnered a ‘B+’ and New Mexico’s Martin Heinrich received a ‘C’. Senators Michael Bennett of Colorado and Gary Peters of Michigan rated a ‘D+’ while Washington’s Maria Cantwell and Arizona’s Mark Kelly earned a ‘D-‘.
In the U.S. House, the ‘F’ grades are simply too numerous to mention, but they are joined by a single Republican, Chris Smith from New Jersey.”
