(Columbus, Ohio) –This election, avid sportsmen and women will know for sure that one of the candidates running for President and Vice President is one of their own. This past weekend former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney made sure of that when he tapped Wisconsin Congressman, Paul Ryan (R–1, Janesville, WI) to join him in his effort to unseat President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden on November 6th.
While many candidates for elected office profess to be hunters and don flannel shirts at this time of year, Ryan doesn’t dabble. He is an avid bowhunter, a fact that has been a point of pride to Wisconsin sportsmen and women over the years. He has chaired the Congressional Sportsmen’s Caucus and supported legislation that has protected the rights of hunters and anglers many times over his 14 years in Washington DC.
This year, that support included his vote in favor of HR 4089, the Sportsmen’s Heritage Act – the most significant piece of pro-sportsmen legislation during Ryan’s tenure in Congress. The bill, which declares federal land open to hunting, fishing and recreational shooting among other things, passed the U.S. House of Representatives in April and has not yet been granted a hearing yet in the Senate.
Congressman Ryan is also a strong and vocal supporter of the Second Amendment and a member of the National Rifle Association. His selection as Governor Romney’s running mate has been met with appreciation by many of the country’s most prominent sportsmen leaders.
“While the U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance does not endorse people for elected office, we are certainly quite pleased to have Congressman Ryan, an avid hunter himself who understands our issues, in this race,” stated Bud Pidgeon, USSA’s president and CEO.
About USSA: The U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance’s watchdog efforts protect hunters’ rights and the interests of anglers, trappers and recreational shooters in the courts, legislatures, at the ballot, in Congress, and through many public education programs. The USSA has more than 170,000 registered Sentries that regularly receive information about conservation issues, and then they actively work to promote and protect scientific conservation through calls and contacts. For more information about the U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance and the Sentry program, call (614) 888-4868 or visit: www.ussportsmen.org.
