Sanders lied when he said he had always scored an "F" rating from the NRA

[lunamagica]

He was "D" minus for the longest time. Why did they let him get away with it?

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

1. Is that a big deal?

[lunamagica]

3. That he scored a D minus for years, or that he lied?

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

4. That it was a D- rather than an F,

since both are so low that I'm not sure it makes much difference.

[lunamagica]

6. Only an F is acceptable to a Democrat. Anyway, the point is that he lied. That is a vey big deal

[crazytown]

7. "Only an F is acceptable to a Democrat"?

Guess you don't get out to the country much.

[Control-Z]

9. He voted against the Brady Act 5 times.

So, yes. It makes a difference. Some would say a big difference.

[NurseJackie]

23. This is disqualifying. I can't support someone like that.

All these things we're now hearing are NOT secrets to anyone who's been paying attention to the BS campaign and the BS career and voting record.

Personally, his record does not impress me... and there are many things about his voting record that truly disturb and anger me.

He won't be getting my vote. (And apparently there are many... growing every day... who feel the same way.)

[George II]

30. I believe that all the other major candidates have F ratings. So, if true.....

....D- is not good, essentially the "best" rating of our rated candidates.

I don't think candidates like Willamson, Yang, etc. have been rated by the NRA.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

5. Many years ago when I ran for office

I got an A rating from the NRA simply because I didn't fill out their form.

I'm sure I'd have gotten an F- if I'd told them what I thought.

[lunamagica]

8. It wasn't a one time thing for him. It went for a long time

[True Blue American]

10. Bernie voted

Against the Brady Bill? Did he ever explain why? That is a really big deal to me.

[Celerity]

12. Did Bernie Sanders vote against background checks and waiting periods for gun purchases?

https://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2015/jul/10/generation-forward-pac/did-bernie-sanders-vote-against-background-checks-/

[True Blue American]

14. Voluntary for States?

Well that would help! NOT!

Thanks for the link. I hope others read it.

[rusty quoin]

11. Bernie is from a state that likes to hunt. Maybe he got A ratings back in the day.

Things change. I was for the Brady Bill, but I never liked guns.

I’m more concerned about the president who only lies.

With the Democrats, there is a little bit this and a little bit that. Nothing is just the way each one of us wants it to be.

But we are up against the ultimate criminal President in American history

[lunamagica]

19. It's not either or. There are better choices

[Cha]

13. Gracias Luna.. If BS had said "D-"..

people might start looking into why.. and that would lead wherever that would lead to.

Link to tweet

Link to tweet

[True Blue American]

15. I do not know one state

That does not have hunters. My state is over run with deer. I have encountered a few on my morning walks. We have woods nearby. E also have a hunting sason and limits.

Almost hit a couple. Have friends and family that have. We have deer crossing signs all over.

But if those hunters can not hit a target that big with one bullet they should not be hunting.

[lunamagica]

20. Very inormative, Thank you Cha!

[Cha]

21. Thank you, Luna..

[Hortensis]

16. :) You're right, no significant difference. What the NRA is

up to in giving Sanders those D- and F ratings is of interest. The NRA and all Democrats understand perfectly well that an easily quoted and understood positive rating can be problematic for Democrats, and Sanders' rating has never risen above a C-. However, their voting records may justify donating to their reelection campaigns.

Sanders voted against the Brady bill 5 times, plus of course other mostly pro- manufacturer votes. And there was his vote for shortening the period under the Brady bill that the government has to respond to a background check (to 3 days), the "Charleston looophole*" which allowed the killer at the black church in Charleston to purchase the gun.

Gun industry donations were a problem when running for president, though, and that problem was corrected afterward:

2016 data for gun lobby donations to candidates, from Marketwatch: "The only non-Republican in the top 25: Bernie Sanders, a Senate independent whose state, Vermont, has a strong hunting tradition. He accepted $11,129 in cash. Sanders, of course, challenged Hillary Clinton for the Democratic Party’s presidential nod. Tops among Democrats in taking in gun-lobby funds was Rep. Henry Cuellar, a centrist Democrat from south Texas.

2018: VERMONT SENATOR BERNIE SANDERS, Independent, Current age: 75 NRA Funding $0.

For perspective, in 2016 most of the top 25 Repubs received between $15-80K. Four were in the mid-$100,000s. Cruz received over $360K.

* After gaining control of the house last January, among the gun control bills house Democrats passed is one closing the Charleston loophole. They wait for 2020 to learn if we will get control fo the senate so they can be passed into law.

[thesquanderer]

17. not accurate to say he was D- "for the longest time"

Yes, Sanders was wrong, and it's strange that he said that since he said D- in the 2016 campaign, and again as recently as one of the earlier debates this year.

But here's the correct info for the years in which the NRA assigned ratings

1992 - D
1994 - F
1996 - F
1998 - F
2000 - F
2002 - F
2004 - D+
2006 - C-
2012 - D-

Source: https://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2016/jan/20/bernie-sanders/bernie-sanders-nra-report-card-d-minus-most-recent/

[LanternWaste]

18. I s'pose we can call this just another one of Bernie's gaffes.

Or we can pretend that gaffes apply to one candidate only.

[thesquanderer]

22. Not a lie, it turns out his most recent rating (2018) is F

see https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1UK4VjlTo6OAA53u8pKv-CDFyQcvC0dAf38e6FXEsCtY/edit#gid=1717204136

[lunamagica]

26. Most recent. He said always

[thesquanderer]

27. Ah. I wonder if it was a one-off slip/mis-statement, or if it is a repeated claim.

If the former, I wouldn't call it a lie. If he always says it, then he should be called on it. ("Lie" isn't about merely being wrong, it's about being intentionally so.)

[BlueMississippi]

24. BS never lies

If he makes an inaccurate statement, his supporters' universe rearranges history to prove that it was not inaccurate.

[betsuni]

29. It happens a lot.

[PhoenixDem]

25. Then there is the question of the uncategorized donations in the FEC report

Could they be from the NRA?

The NRA is also known the funnel payments through several 527 entities where a direct contribution would be problematic for the candidate.

[ritapria]

28. What Bernie has said on Campaign trail

Bernie has stated repeatedly that he received a D- rating from the NRA and iintends to get an F Rating as President …..Bernie voted against the Brady Bill ...He made a mistake ...He made a mistake when he voted for Biden's Crime Bill ….Liz voted for Ronald Reagan and was a Republican until she reached the age of 47 ..We all make mistakes ..We are all human ….

[betsuni]

31. Warren did not vote for Reagan. She said the only Republican she voted for was Ford.