By Dave Workman
Senior Editor
A fury has erupted across the firearms community in the wake of a decision by comedian Jay Leno to back out of an appearance he was scheduled to make at the Shooting, Hunting and Outdoor Trade (SHOT) Show’s annual State of the Industry dinner in January.
The SHOT Show is sponsored by the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), and according to published reports, Leno cancelled his appearance after being lobbied by gun prohibitionists. Human Events called the former Tonight Show host a “coward” and accused him of caving in to “liberal activists.”
Alan Gottlieb, chairman of the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms, and an annual attendee of the SHOT Show along with CCRKBA’s sister organization, the Second Amendment Foundation, was blunt.
“It doesn’t say much about Jay Leno’s character,” Gottlieb observed. “He knew what the SHOT Show was when he made the commitment.”
NSSF also issued a statement, reporting that Leno “unilaterally cancelled his promised appearance due to pressure from the anti-gun lobby, which included false statements about our industry and its commitment to genuine firearms safety, which we attempted to personally correct with him, but to no avail.”
“We are not deterred by their publicity seeking nor are we unfamiliar with the bullying political tactics of the gun control groups,” NSSF said in a statement, “that seem to have as little respect for the First Amendment as they continually demonstrate with regard to the Second Amendment.”
Gottlieb said this is just another demonstration of the increasingly heavy-handed tactics now being used by the gun control lobby. And once again, anti-gunners exhibited something of a double standard when they went after Leno only a day after several entertainers had appeared at a fund raising event in California to raise money for the Moms Demand Action and Everytown for Gun Safety.
Leno’s appearance would not have been as a fund-raiser, anyway. He would have provided the main entertainment at the annual industry dinner, which is heavily attended, and for which hundreds of tickets had already been sold because he was the headliner.
Leno’s cancellation will not stop the annual industry gala, NSSF vowed. “Despite Mr. Leno’s cancellation,” the statement noted with a pointed remar, “we look forward to having our biggest and best State of the Industry Dinner to date with a performer that respects the contributions of our industry and the customers it supports.”
NSSF has been a leader in promoting firearms safety and the lawful use of firearms for hunting, competition, recreation and personal protection. In 1999, NSSF created Project ChildSafe to educate gun owners of all ages about firearms safety in the home. NSSF is responsible for the First Shots program, which introduces new shooters to safe and enjoyable firearms use.
Recently, the industry group came out in opposition to Washington State’s anti-gun Initiative 594, an 18-page gun control measure promoted as a “universal background check” proposal. CCRKBA had been involved in the opposition to that measure, as well as promoting an alternative, Initiative 591.
NSSF has also become a leader in setting the record straight on firearms ownership and crime. The accompanying video was released in early June, and essentially puts the lie to long standing predictions by the gun prohibition lobby that more guns in private hands leads to more violent crime.
Overall, the firearms industry and American gun owners have contributed billions of dollars to wildlife conservation and enhancement programs, through the Pittman-Robertson Federal Aid to Wildlife Restoration Act, passed in 1937. NSSF is responsible for education programs that help retailers comply with federal and state firearms laws.