In the Shadow of Sandy Hook, a Powerful Pro-Gun Organization Keeps Silent. NSSF

The National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) is a couple of miles across the highway from Sandy Hook school. They are probably the 2nd most powerful gun lobby in the country.

In the Shadow of Sandy Hook, a Powerful Pro-Gun Organization Keeps Silent


Eric Thayer / Reuters A woman places flowers at a memorial for the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown, Conn., on Dec. 15, 2012

While firearms manufacturing is a big business in Connecticut, until this week, the politics of guns did not appear to be a central state issue. Democratic Governor Dan Malloy earned the endorsement of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, largely due to his efforts to crack down on illegal weapons as mayor of Stamford. The Brady Campaign is an organization that has often been at odds with the National Rifle Association, one of the most powerful pro-gun organizations in the country.

A lesser-known, yet perhaps equally powerful pro-gun institution not only has its headquarters in Connecticut, but is located just a couple of miles from Sandy Hook Elementary. The National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) is a trade organization that consists of “more than 7,000 manufacturers, distributors, firearms retailers, shooting ranges, sportsmen’s organizations and publishers,” according to the organization’s website. The NSSF has not commented on the shooting literally just down the road from its headquarters, other than a small post on their website that reads:

“Our hearts go out to the families of the victims of this horrible tragedy in our community.

“Out of respect for the families, the community and the ongoing police investigation, it would be inappropriate to comment or participate in media requests at this time.”

Here is that group's defense of the assault weapons and why they say they are needed.

“The term assault weapon was conjured up by anti-gun legislators to scare voters into thinking these firearms are something out of a horror movie,” the NSSF wrote in its fact sheet. “In fact, the Colt AR-15 and Springfield M1A, both labeled ‘assault weapons,’ are the rifles most often used for marksmanship competitions in the United States. And their cartridges are standard hunting calibers, useful for game up to and including deer.”

I guess maybe silence is better now considering what they said after the Aurora shootings.

After last summer’s shooting in Aurora, Colo., the NSSF wrote: “Instead of focusing on the main problem, the actions of a mentally disturbed person, the focus has once again shifted to legislating law-abiding citizens who use firearms for legitimate purposes. The tragedy in Colorado is not about firearms, ammunition or magazines. It’s about the act of a mad man and gaining access to firearms. We abhor the criminal misuse of firearms.” Following a tragedy in their own community, once an appropriate time has passed, perhaps the NSSF will lead a discussion of how to prevent mad men from gaining access to firearms in the future.

Their representative was at an August meeting in Newtown held about the growing concerns of automatic gunfire from areas that were not really firing ranges.

But in the last couple of years, residents began noticing loud, repeated gunfire, and even explosions, coming from new places. Near a trailer park. By a boat launch. Next to well-appointed houses. At 2:20 p.m. on one Wednesday last spring, multiple shots were reported in a wooded area on Cold Spring Road near South Main Street, right across the road from an elementary school.

Yet recent efforts by the police chief and other town leaders to gain some control over the shooting and the weaponry turned into a tumultuous civic fight, with traditional hunters and discreet gun owners opposed by assault weapon enthusiasts, and a modest tolerance for bearing arms competing with the staunch views of a gun industry trade association, the National Shooting Sports Foundation, which has made Newtown its home.

..."The first meeting took place on Aug. 2, with about 60 people crowding into the room. Some spoke in favor of the new rules, the meeting minutes show. But many voiced their opposition, citing the waiting lists at established gun ranges. Among the speakers was a representative of the National Shooting Sports Foundation, who was described as saying he believed there was a greater danger of swimming accidents. “No privileges should be taken away from another generation,” he said.

In Town at Ease With Its Firearms, Tightening Gun Rules Was Resisted