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July 24, 2024
NSSF PROFILE Q&A: U.S. Rep. Mark Alford (R-Mo.)
Editor’s Note: We are pleased to post the latest of our occasional Q&A features with an elected official who supports hunting and the shooting sports. NSSF thanks U.S. Rep. Mark Alford (R-Mo.) for speaking with us about his staunch support for the Second Amendment and the importance of the firearm and ammunition industry. Rep. Alford represents the Fourth Congressional District in Missouri and is serving in his first term in Congress. Rep. Alford serves on the House Armed Services Committee, the House Agriculture Committee and the House Small Business Committee. We thank Rep. Alford for speaking with us.
1) Who introduced you to hunting and the shooting sports?
My father introduced me to firearms at an early age. I took hunter safety courses in junior high in Texas and enjoyed hunting squirrels and deer with my father. He was very deliberate in making sure that I knew the proper safety and handling techniques for firearms and respected every firearm as if it were loaded. We always had guns in the house. We always knew where they were and how to use them, but we respected them.
2) What was your most recent shooting sports/hunting experience?
I competed in a sporting clays tournament awhile back. It’d been a while since I shot sporting clays, but somehow, I still managed to hit those clays!
3) Describe your favorite shooting sports or hunting activity.
Sporting clays and skeet shooting! Who doesn’t love to burn gunpowder and break clays with their friends on a Saturday morning?
4) Which piece of pending legislation in Congress related to the conservation, hunting and the firearm industry is particularly important to you and why?
H.R. 450, the Repeal the NFA Act. The National Firearms Act has repeatedly been used to violate Americans’ rights under the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and target law-abiding gun owners. Repealing the NFA would prevent the government from further assaults on our constitutional rights.
5) What do you see as the challenges and opportunities in Congress for hunters and shooting sports enthusiasts?
The greatest challenge we face is the relentless attack on Second Amendment rights that we are currently seeing. I believe this is, at least, in part, due to unfamiliarity with firearms and a fear of the dangers they can face. Many people don’t understand the critical role that hunting plays in the conservation of our environment and the corresponding relationship between humans and animals that inhabit it. The opportunities lie in education. Firearms and hunters’ safety courses give people the opportunity to learn more about conservation and allows them to become comfortable with the proper use, handling, and storage of firearms.
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