[6] According to Snyder, he registered as a gun lobbyist before the NRA had its own operation lobbying the Capitol.
[4][5][7] Since 1979, Snyder has sent annual, controversial Christmas cards to the President, Pope, members of Congress, and the U.S. media,[8][5][9] featuring images combining Christian and Christmas-related symbols with guns, which received some media coverage.
[6][10] According to the society, Gabriel's marksmanship and proficiency with handguns allegedly saved the village of Isola del Gran Sasso from a band of 20 marauding bandits in 1860.
Moreover, in 1860, at the time of the alleged incident, Gabriel was in the later stages of tuberculosis, which would have made such strenuous exercise impossible.
[12]: 37 John McCaslin wrote that presidential candidate Pat Buchanan pledged to Snyder, "when I get to that White House, I'm gonna take that medallion you gave me—the patron saint of hand-gunners, Gabriel Possenti—and I'm gonna hang that in the Oval Office right along with Robert E. Lee's pistol!