Congressional Sportsmen's Caucus Foundation

Ron Kind co-chairs the bipartisan group working for sportsmen and 2nd Amendment rights


The trophy for the largest bipartisan caucus with members from both chambers goes to the Congressional Sportsmen's Caucus, which has 287 members -- 229 in the House, 58 in the Senate. The caucus has four co-chairs: Republicans Paul Ryan (Wis.) and Steve Pearce (N.M.), and Democrats Ron Kind (Wis.) and Dan Boren (Okla.).

The caucus works on behalf of hunters, advocating for access to hunting sites, concerns related to the Second Amendment, and measures to support wildlife. It has a brother in the Congressional Sportsmen's Caucus Foundation, which has sponsored events to bring together hunting advocates on and off Capitol Hill and is financially supported by hunting-related organizations and companies.

One of those annual events is the congressional "Shoot Out," a gathering in Virginia in which Republicans and Democrats compete at blasting clay pigeons. In 2006, Republicans won with the closest score in the event's 12-year history. Rep. Robin Hayes (R-N.C.) won the "Congressional Top Gun" by hitting 63 of 75 pigeons. Caucus officials are evaluating whether the event can continue this year in the wake of new House ethics rules.

The Caucus is effective because its members check their party hat at the door and know that when they stand in support of an issue it is for the good of wildlife, natural resources, hunting and fishing.

The active leadership of the CSC includes a Democrat and Republican chair and vice chair in the House and the Senate. Having chairs and vice chairs not only distributes the workload, but allows more members to become familiar with the Caucus and how to best operate it.

Read more on the Congression Sportmen's Foundation.