NRA “TWO FACES” FACT CHECK

OVERVIEW

• Jon Tester, a former chair of the Congressional Sportsmen’s Caucus, has been recognized for his advocacy for Montanans’ Second Amendment rights by the National Shooting Sports Foundation and sportsmen groups like the the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership and the Boone and Crockett Club.

• Jon Tester has relentlessly defended Montanans’ Second Amendment rights in the U.S. Senate, supporting President Trump’s repeal of an Obama Administration rule that would have undermined gun owners’ due process rights and repeatedly bucking his party on issues like a national gun registry and putting government in the middle of family firearm sales.

• Matt Rosendale began his Senate campaign with a “pants on fire” lie about Jon Tester’s record on the Second Amendment and has since confused the Second Amendment with Article II of the U.S. Constitution in a campaign ad.

CLAIM FACTS

V/O: Jon Tester JON TESTER HAS BEEN RECOGNIZED BY SPORTSMEN GROUPS AS A STRONG has two faces. SUPPORTER OF THE SECOND AMENDMENT

O/S: JON 2012: Jon Tester Was Named The National Shooting Sports Foundation’s Legislator Of The TESTER HAS Year. “The National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), the trade association for the firearms, TWO FACES ammunition, hunting and shooting sports industry, honored Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) and Rep. Jeff Miller (R-Fla.) as NSSF's 2011 Legislators of the Year at an NSSF Political Action Committee V/O: In Montana, (PAC) reception held this evening in Washington, D.C., on the eve of the firearms industry's he says he annual Congressional Fly-In.” [News Release, National Shooting Sports Foundation, 4/18/12] supports gun rights. • National Shooting Sports Foundation Senior VP: “Sen. Tester's Leadership In The United States Senate Has Helped To Ensure And Protect Our Shooting Sports, Hunting O/S: SUPPORTS And Firearms Freedoms.” “In presenting the awards, NSSF Senior Vice President and GUN RIGHTS General Counsel Lawrence G. Keane praised the leadership qualities of the two lawmakers. ‘Sen. Tester's leadership in the United States Senate has helped to ensure and protect our V/O: But in shooting sports, hunting and firearms freedoms,’ said Keane. ‘NSSF is pleased to present to Washington DC, Sen. Tester NSSF's 2011 Legislator of the Year Award and looks forward to continuing a his votes tell a constructive dialogue with him on public-policy matters affecting the industry.’” [News different story. Release, National Shooting Sports Foundation, 4/18/12]

O/S: VOTE GUN 2013: Jon Tester Was Presented With The James D. Range Conservation Award By The RIGHTS NO Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership. “The TRCP will be celebrating the legacy of Theodore Roosevelt, our sporting traditions and those who have made a difference for fish and V/O: In all three wildlife conservation in America. This year, we will be honoring Ted Turner, media mogul, votes on Supreme philanthropist and conservationist, with the 2013 Lifetime Conservation Achievement Award and Court Justices, both Senator Jon Tester of Montana and Congressman Mike Simpson of Idaho with the James D. Tester sided with Range Conservation Award.” [Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership, 4/18/13] Chuck Schumer and the anti-gun • Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership Presented The James D. Range liberal left. Conservation Award To Members Of Congress For Their Dedication To Protecting What Sportsmen Value. “Sen. Heinrich and Sen. Risch were presented with the 2016 James D. O/S: Range Conservation Award—named for TRCP’s co-founder, a conservation visionary, and presented to one Democrat and one Republican each year—for their dedication to protecting ALL THREE what sportsmen value in Congress.” [Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership, Press VOTES Release, 4/28/16]

ANTI-GUN 2011: Jon Tester Was Named Chairman Of The Congressional Sportsmen’s LIBERAL LEFT Caucus. “Montana Democratic Sen. Jon Tester has hit the ground running as the new chairman of the Congressional Sportsmen's Caucus, having introduced at least half a dozen bills in the past V/O: Against your few months to increase access to hunting lands, prevent U.S. EPA from regulating lead bullets right to self- and promote gun rights, among other things. In doing so, the freshman senator is aiming to prove defense. his mettle with a politically powerful hunting and angling community in Montana as he faces a tough re-election bid against Montana GOP Rep. Denny Rehberg, who has introduced his own O/S: AGAINST bills supporting hunting and gun rights.” [Greenwire, 6/29/11] YOUR RIGHT TO SELF DEFENSE Boone And Crockett Club: “Tester Stands Out Among His Peers For His Persistent And Remarkable Work On Behalf Of Sportsmen And Women.” [Boone And Crockett Club, 9/2/11] V/O: What Jon Tester says in Montana Wildlife Federation Executive Director: “[Jon Tester] Has Been Doing A Montana isn't Commendable Job On Our Behalf…Plain And Simple, He Is Sensitive To The Issues Of what he does in Sportspersons.” [Greenwire, 6/29/11] Washington DC. Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership’s Bill Geer: “It's Not New To Him, That's O/S: WHAT JON Just Where His Heart Is…Senator Tester Is Very Pro-Sportsmen. He's Very Good On TESTER SAYS IN Hunting And Fishing And Wildlife Conservation In General Issues.” [Greenwire, 6/29/11] MONTANA JON TESTER HAS RELENTLESSLY DEFENDED MONTANANS’ SECOND AMENDMENT V/O: Jon Tester RIGHTS AND BUCKED HIS PARTY TO DO SO has two faces. JON TESTER VOTED TO ELIMINATE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION GUN CONTROL RULE O/S: TWO FACES OPPOSED BY DISABILITY ADVOCATES AND THE NRA

V/O: And we can't Jon Tester Voted To Disapprove Of And Nullify An Obama Administration Rule Requiring trust either one. Certain Mentally Ill Social Security Beneficiaries Be Reported To The National Instant Criminal Background Check System. On February 15, 2017, Jon Tester voted for “Passage of O/S: AND WE the joint resolution that would disapprove of and nullify a Social Security Administration rule that CAN'T TRUST outlines reporting of information by the agency on certain non-elderly individuals who receive EITHER ONE disability insurance or Supplemental Security Income benefits for inclusion in the National Instant Criminal Background Check System for gun purchases if they receive benefits based on a finding V/O: NRA of mental impairment and use a ‘representative payee’ because they cannot manage their benefit disclaimer. payments.” The measure was passed by a vote of 57-43. [Vote 66, H.J. Res. 40, 2/15/17; CQ, 2/15/17]

• NRA Applauded Congressional Decision To Review The Obama Administration’s Social Security NICS Act As “A Significant Step Forward In Protecting A Fundamental Constitutional Right For Law-Abiding Gun Owners.” [The Hill, 1/25/17]

• National Disability Rights Network Urged Congress To Support Disapproval Of The Obama Administration’s Social Security NICS Rule Due In Part To “The Absence Of Any Meaningful Due Process Protections” For Those Names Transmitted To The System. [Letter to Paul Ryan and Nancy Pelosi, 1/30/17]

• National Council On Disability Chair Clyde Terry Recommended That Congress Repeal The Obama Administration’s Social Security NICS Rule Due To The Importance Of The Constitutional Right At Stake And The Very Real Stigma That This Rule Legitimizes.” [NCD Letter to Congress Regarding Repeal of SSA NICS Rule, 1/23/17]

JON TESTER VEHEMENTLY OPPOSED NATIONAL GUN REGISTRY

HEADLINE: “Republican Senate Hopeful's Absurd Claim Montana Sen. Jon Tester Supports A National Gun Registry.” [PolitiFact, 8/21/17]

PolitiFact: “Tester’s Record Shows Clear Instances Where He Opposed Gun Registries.” “The Rosendale campaign said further that Tester’s votes against several measures means he is tolerant of a national gun registry because these measures would have made it harder to enact one. However — leaving aside whether these bills would have done that — the reality is that Tester’s record shows clear instances where he opposed gun registries.” [PolitiFact, 8/21/17]

Jon Tester Led Opposition To Obama Administration-Supported UN Arms Trade Treaty, Arguing It Could Give An International Body Authority Over U.S. Arms Sales Protected By The Second Amendment. [U.S. News & World Report, 7/26/11]

• 2011: NRA-ILA: “We Are Grateful To…Senator Jon Tester” For His Leadership Against The U.N. Arms Trade Treaty That Would “Undermine The Constitutional Rights Of Law- Abiding American Gun Owners.” [News Release, NRA-ILA, 7/22/11]

JON TESTER VOTED AGAINST REQUIRING CRIMINAL BACKGROUND CHECKS ON GUN SALES BETWEEN FAMILY MEMBERS

HEADLINE: “Tester Breaks With Democrats On Gun Vote.” [Great Falls Tribune, 6/21/16]

Jon Tester Voted Against Obama Administration-Supported Measure That Would Have Required A Background Check For Almost Any Sale Or Transfer Of A Firearm. On June 20, 2016, Jon Tester voted against a motion to invoke cloture on a motion to commit H.R. 2578 with instructions. The Washington Post reported: “The Senate also rejected, on a 44 to 56 vote, a measure from Sens. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., Cory Booker, D-N.J., and Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., that would expand background checks for anyone trying to purchase a firearm, including at a gun show or online. It was a more expansive version of a compromise measure from Sens. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Pat Toomey, R-Pa., that sought to expand background checks in 2013 after the mass shooting at the Sandy Hook school in Newtown, Connecticut. Their proposal never gained the needed support. Collins voted against the measure and King voted for it. Republicans objected to the breadth of the Murphy-Booker-Schumer proposal, which would require a background check for almost any sale or transfer of a firearm…The Obama administration said Monday that it supported the Feinstein and Murphy-Booker-Schumer amendments.” The motion was rejected by a vote of 44-56. [Vote 104, H.R. 2578, 6/20/16; Washington Post, 6/20/16]

• PolitiFact: “Murphy’s Proposal Would Have Expanded The Checks To Include Sales At Gun Shows, Over The Internet And Those Between Friends And Family Members.” “Hassan’s campaign pointed us to an amendment sponsored by U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy, a Connecticut Democrat. Current law requires background checks only for purchases from federally licensed gun dealers. Murphy’s proposal would have expanded the checks to include sales at gun shows, over the internet and those between friends and family members. Ayotte joined Republican colleagues on a mostly partisan vote to defeat the measure 44-56, well short of the 60 votes needed to advance.” [PolitiFact, 6/21/16]

• Jon Tester Spokeswoman: “Jon Opposed This Amendment Because It Would Have Blocked Family Members And Neighbors From Buying And Selling Guns To One Another Without A Background Check.” [Missoulian, 6/21/16]

JON TESTER PUSHED TO PROHIBIT THE VA FROM BARRING VETERANS FROM OWNING GUNS WITHOUT JUDICIAL OVERSIGHT

2013: Jon Tester Voted To Prevent Veterans From Being Blocked From Owning Guns Unless A Court Found He Or She Was A Danger To Themselves Or Others. On April 17, 2013, Jon Tester voted for “Burr, R-N.C., amendment no. 720 that would prevent veterans who are mentally incapacitated, deemed mentally incompetent or experiencing an extended loss of consciousness from being deemed ‘a mental defective’ and blocked from owning guns unless a court finds that the individual poses a danger to himself or others.” The amendment was rejected by a vote of 56-44. [Vote 102, S.Amdt. 720 to S. 649, 4/17/13; CQ, 4/17/13]

• 2011: Jon Tester Cosponsored The Veterans Second Amendment Protection Act, To Prohibit Veterans From Being Barred From Owning Firearms Without A Judicial Finding That They Were Dangers To Themselves Or Others. On November 2, 2011, Jon Tester cosponsored S. 1707, the “Veterans Second Amendment Protection Act - Prohibits, in any case arising out of the administration of laws and benefits by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA), considering any person who is mentally incapacitated, deemed mentally incompetent, or experiencing an extended loss of consciousness from being considered adjudicated as a mental defective for purposes of the right to receive or transport firearms without the order or finding of a judicial authority of competent jurisdiction that such person is a danger to himself or herself or others.” [Cosponsors, S. 1707, Congress.Gov, 11/2/11]

American Legion Supported The Veterans Second Amendment Protection Act To Prohibit VA Officials From Unfairly Stripping Veterans Capable Of Operating Firearms From Exercising Their Second Amendment Rights. [Charles Schmidt, Newsweek, 3/16/17]

NRA Supported The Veterans Second Amendment Protection Act. [News, NRA-ILA, 11/13/15]

JON TESTER FOUGHT TO ALLOW LAW-ABIDING GUN OWNERS TO CARRY FIREARMS ON FEDERAL PUBLIC LANDS AND PARKS

HEADLINE: “On The Hill: Senate Narrowly Rejects Pro-Gun Amendment, While House Committee Approves Protection For Veterans.” [Daily Caller, NRA-ILA, 5/11/13]

Jon Tester Voted To Prohibit The Army Corps of Engineers From Banning Firearms Possession On Water Infrastructure Property. On May 8, 2013, Jon Tester voted for “Coburn, R-Okla., amendment no. 805 to the Boxer, D-Calif., substitute amendment no. 799. The Coburn amendment would bar the Army secretary from establishing or enforcing regulations that prohibit the possession of firearms on water infrastructure property managed by the Army Corps of Engineers if the individual is not prohibited from possessing it and is in compliance with state gun laws.” The amendment was rejected by a vote of 56-43. [Vote 115, S.Amdt. 805 to S.Amdt. 799 to S. 601, 5/8/13; CQ, 5/8/13]

• Coburn Amendment Would Allow Gun Owners To Carry Weapons Onto Land Owned By The Army Corps Of Engineers If State Law Permitted It. [U.S. News & World Report, 5/8/13]

2011: Jon Tester Was An Original Cosponsor Of The Bipartisan Recreational Land Self- Defense Act. On September 21, 2011, Jon Tester cosponsored S. 1588, the “Recreational Land Self-Defense Act of 2011 - Prohibits the Secretary of the Army from promulgating or enforcing any regulation that prohibits an individual from possessing a firearm at a water resources development project administered by the Chief of Engineers if: (1) the individual is not otherwise prohibited by law from possessing the firearm, and (2) the possession of the firearm is in compliance with the law of the state in which the project is located.” [Cosponsors, S. 1588, Congress.Gov, 9/21/11]

• NRA-ILA: Recreational Land Self-Defense Act Was “Important Legislation” That Would Prohibit The Army Corps Of Engineers From Enforcing Regulations That Prohibited Gun Possession In Compliance With State Law On Its Projects And Lands. [News Release, NRA-ILA, 9/23/11]

• National Shooting Sports Foundation Applauded The Recreational Land Self-Defense Act For “Protect[ing] Gun Owners’ Rights On Recreational Land.” [Bullet Points, National Shooting Sports Foundation, 9/26/11]

2009: Jon Tester Voted To Bar The Interior Department From Prohibiting Individuals From Possessing Firearms In National Parks Or Wildlife Refuges. On May 12, 2009, Jon Tester voted for “Coburn, R-Okla., amendment no. 1067 to the Dodd, D-Conn., substitute amendment no. 1058. The Coburn amendment would bar the Interior Department from prohibiting an individual from possessing a firearm in a national park or wildlife refuge.” The amendment was adopted by a vote of 67-29. [Vote 188, S.Amdt. 1067 to S.Amdt. 1058 to H.R. 627, 5/12/09; CQ, 5/12/09]

• 2009: Jon Tester Was An Original Cosponsor Of The NRA-Backed Preservation Of The Second Amendment In National Parks And Wildlife Refuges Act, To Allow Possession Of Firearms In A National Park Or Wildlife Refuge. On April 2, 2009, Jon Tester cosponsored S. 816, the “Preservation of the Second Amendment in National Parks and National Wildlife Refuges Act - Allows, except as provided under federal criminal law relating to the possession of firearms and other dangerous weapons in federal facilities, a person to possess, carry, and transport concealed, loaded, and operable firearms within a national park area or national wildlife refuge area in accordance with the laws of the state in which such area, or that portion thereof, is located.” [Cosponsors, S. 816, Congress.Gov, 4/2/09; News Release, National Rifle Association, 4/2/09]

MATT ROSENDALE BEGAN HIS SENATE CAMPAIGN WITH A “PANTS ON FIRE” LIE ABOUT JON TESTER’S RECORD ON GUNS

PolitiFact Called Matt Rosendale’s Claim That Jon Tester Supported A National Gun Registry “Absurd,” “Flat Wrong,” And A “Pants On Fire” Lie. [PolitiFact, 8/21/17]

• PolitiFact: “Tester’s Record Shows Opposition To A Federal List Of Lawfully-Owned Guns And Gun Owners. To Claim He Supports This Is Absurd.” [PolitiFact, 8/21/17]

MATT ROSENDALE MISIDENTIFIED THE SECOND AMENDMENT AS ARTICLE II OF THE CONSTITUTION IN A CAMPAIGN AD

HEADLINE: “Campaign Ad Criticized For Incorrect Constitution Reference.” [ABC Fox MT, 9/4/18]

HEADLINE: “Montana Senate Candidate Faces Backlash After Misattributing Constitution In Pro-Gun Ad.” [Fox News, 9/5/18]

HEADLINE: “Montana Senate Candidate Confuses Second Amendment With Article II In Campaign Ad.” [Huffington Post, 9/4/18]

Matt Rosendale Was Forced To Delete A Campaign Ad After He Attributed Lines From The Second Amendment To Article II Of The U.S. Constitution. [Fox News, 9/5/18]

• Huffington Post: “Matt Rosendale’s Ad Talks About Gun Rights And The Constitution’s Second Amendment While Showing Article II, Which Deals With The Executive Branch.” [Huffington Post, 9/4/18]