Hogg is an outspoken young survivor of the Parkland (Fla.) High School mass shooting in February, in which 17 people, most of them Hogg's classmates, were killed. How Van Drew caught the attention of a South Florida student activist is unclear, but the reason is not: the conservative Democrat state senator's high marks from the National Rifle Association[1].
Hogg recently tweeted: "Remember both Democrats and Republicans take #NRABloodMoney. Just look at New Jersey state senator @JeffVanDrew, he's a Democrat with An A rating for the NRA."
Van Drew is widely considered the front-runner for the 2nd District U.S. House seat that longtime Republican incumbent Frank LoBiondo will give up at year's end. In truth, the state senator from Cape May would likely be more amenable to sensible federal gun reforms than LoBiondo, whose initial foray into Congress was heavily financed by the NRA.
Yet, if Van Drew no longer stands with the NRA, he hasn't run away too hard or too fast. He says he last took NRA contributions 10 years ago, and he'll refuse them now. His problem is that standing with the NRA today is taken to mean opposing no-loophole-whatsoever background checks, supporting virtually unlimited access to rapid-fire weapons, and allowing people on "no-fly" lists to keep buying guns. In the age of Parkland, that's a view that's out of step with what most Americans want.
Van Drew seems to want it both ways. It's widely believed that the state Senate held up voting on any substantial new gun
