Bryan Cooper

Bailey
AP Gov
The National Rifle Association of America (NRA) is an American nonprofit organization whose
primary mission as cited on their website, is "[to] protect and defend the Constitution of the United
States...", especially the right to keep and bear arms. Founded in 1871, the group has informed its
members about firearm related bills since 1934, and it has directly lobbied for and against legislation
since 1975. Originally founded to advance rifle marksmanship, the modern NRA continues to teach
firearm competency and safety. It instructs civilians and law enforcement, youths and adults, in various
programs. The organization also publishes several magazines and sponsors competitive marksmanship
events. Its membership surpassed 5 million in May 2013.
After 1977, the organization expanded its membership by focusing heavily on political issues and
forming coalitions with conservative politicians, most of them Republicans. With a goal to weaken the
GCA, Knox's ILA successfully lobbied Congress to pass the Firearm Owners Protection Act (FOPA) of
1986 and worked to reduce the powers of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and
Explosives(ATF). In 1982, Knox was ousted as director of the ILA, but began mobilizing outside the
NRA framework and continued to promote opposition to gun control laws.
In 1994, the NRA unsuccessfully opposed the Federal Assault Weapons Ban (AWB), but
successfully lobbied for the ban's 2004 expiration. Heston was elected president in 1998 and became a
highly visible spokesman for the organization. In an effort to improve the NRA's image, Heston
presented himself as the voice of reason in contrast to Knox. However, it was Charleston Heston's
famous From My Cold Dead Hands rally after the Columbine School shootings that gave the NRA an
especially negative stand from liberal viewpoints.
Observers see the NRA as one of the top three most influential lobbying groups in Washington.
Over its history the organization has influenced legislation, participated in or initiated lawsuits, and

endorsed or opposed various candidates.

The Sierra Club is also an influential lobbying force in Washington, operating offices on K
Street and fervently supporting the Democratic ticket with financial aid; however, the Sierra Club is an
environmental organization. It was founded on May 28, 1892, in San Francisco, California, by the
Scottish-born American conservationist and preservationist John Muir, who became its first president.
Traditionally associated with the progressive movement, the club was one of the first large-scale
environmental preservation organizations in the world, and currently engages in lobbying politicians to
promote green policies. In recent years, the club has gravitated toward green politics and especially
toward bright green environmentalism. Recent focuses of the club include green energy and preventing
climate change, although traditional concerns such as the preservation of public lands and mitigating
pollution remain policy priorities. The Sierra Club's mission is stated as such on their website: To
explore, enjoy, and protect the wild places of the earth; To practice and promote the responsible use of
the earth's ecosystems and resources; To educate and enlist humanity to protect and restore the quality
of the natural and human environment; and to use all lawful means to carry out these objectives. This
statement regularly places them at odds with the NRA over various topics such as the use of lead
ammunition in regards to environment pollution and the overfishing or hunting of certain locations.
Both of these groups are necessary for the political climate of the United States; each one has a
powerful legislative lobbying arm suited to advance their own interests, and they serve to both check
and balance each others influence on creating government legislation. Each one of these groups
represents an ideological extreme and they must be extreme in order to exert any sort of influence on
the relatively moderate congress. It is this relationship between the parties and their key lobbying
groups that highlights the American method of politics. While parties strive to gather people together
under one common voting banner, interest and lobbying groups strive to segregate the broad-defined
goals of the Democratic or Republican parties into their own specific agendas.