The Politics of Hunting

Gun owners (and, by extension, hunters) have been a reliable Republican voting bloc for decades. Many have surmised this is because most hunters tend to be conservative in nature, that a large majority of hunters reside in so-called "Red States" and merely reflect the characteristics of the general populace in these areas.

I believe most hunters vote Republican for a simple reason: gun owners in this country have been conditioned (I don't think brainwashed is too harsh a word) to believe the Democratic Party is anti-gun. Moreover, these gun owners -- mistakenly I think -- are convinced the Democrats long-term vision is to rid the United States of guns and revoke the 2nd Amendment.

The National Rifle Association (NRA) has long been the nation's foremost advocate for gun rights. To its credit, the NRA has traditionally been at the forefront for improved gun training and safety and is a tireless advocate for hunters. Unfortunately, the NRA's incessant drumbeat that "liberal politicians" are out to get our guns has become an accepted mantra among gun owners and hunters.

Yet there is virtually no evidence this is the case. As far as I can tell, not a single elected Democrat in the last two decades has called for making sporting arms illegal. Other than the assault weapons ban of the Clinton era and the recently-passed legislation making it more difficult for persons with a history of mental illness to buy a gun, no significant anti-gun legislation has passed in over twenty years -- and the NRA itself supported the mental illness exception.

Yet hunters continue to believe their right to own their shotgun, rifle or hunting handgun is in jeopardy. And that has caused hunters to, in a "What's the Matter With Kansas" vein, repeatedly vote against their own best interests.

Since the resignation of Richard Nixon, who left an outstanding environmental legacy including the Endangered Species Act, the Clean Water Act and the Clean Air Act, every Republican administration has not just had a spotty environmental record, they have been downright anti- wildlife. From Reagan's disastrous decision to appoint James Watt as head of Interior to Bush Junior's attempts to eviscerate Nixon's legacy and roll back Bill Clinton's National Forest roadless initiative, the Republican Party's record on wildlife protection has been nothing short of abominable. And the party has been particularly ostrich-like on what will ultimately be the seminal issue of our time, not just for this nation's wildlife but the world's: global warming.

This record begs the obvious question: what good is it for hunters to have the right to bear arms if there's nothing left to hunt? Hunters would do better to shelve their concerns about imaginary attacks on the 2nd Amendment and instead look for candidates who support both sport hunting and strong protections for the environment and wildlife.

Finally: Hunting and the Environmental Movement