I'm a political hack, and I know puffery. NOW THAT'S PUFFERY

You have got to go read this.

The South Dakota Gun Owners organization recently posted an 18 year retrospective of their accomplishments. It's good that it doesn't instead go back a few billion years, or else they would have likely taken credit for the creation of the sun and the moon (about 6000 years for you creationists).

According to the article-

Gun owners are some of the finest folks in South Dakota. United, they are also one of the most powerful forces in politics today. Over the past 18 years, they have formed the backbone of SDGO's work to defend the right to arms.

The organization began in 1988 as a small group of concerned citizens in the Rapid City area. Since then, it has grown to more than 3500 gun owners state-wide who have achieved many significant victories.

And...

During the 2004 session, SDGO's continuing work against "emergency" firearms confiscation paid off when a bill was passed which repealed the governor's power to take legal weapons.

Now wait a minute. 2004 was the year when this organization came to a higher level of attention for the legislators. Last I recall, it certainly wasn't positive attention.

I didn't think they won any significant victories that year. If they did anything, I think they poisoned the well for themselves (From an old AP article):

The SDGO lobbyists opposed SB212, urging legislators to instead pass HB1287, a broader measure which said no private property could be used or taken by the governor during disasters.

and...

After passing SB212, legislators unanimously killed HB1287, but not before sharply criticizing the Lautenschlagers. The SDGO lobbyists launched a campaign designed to twist the facts on the emergency powers issue and intimidate lawmakers, legislators said.

His voice rising, House Republican Leader Bill Peterson of Sioux Falls said the Lautenschlagers were untruthful and used questionable, high-pressure tactics on lawmakers.

"Legislators who leave their families, who leave their jobs, who come here to try to do the best job they can have been threatened," Peterson said. "They have been threatened by mail, they have been threatened by phone and they have been threatened in person.

"Let me be very clear to both of you, you don't scare us one damn bit and you never will. Take that message back home with you, and take that message back to your membership."

That legislative bill hearing was pretty significant, because the blistering wrath the legislators unleashed on the SDGO lobbyists is now legendary in that it's never been so loud, so angry or so unanimous.

In spite of a legislative blistering, they're still up at the legislature fighting their wrongs. But saying that they have 18 years of accomplishment? After the butt-chewing they got in 2004, I think I'd call it something else.