A Clay County sheriff’s candidate is embroiled in a brouhaha with the National Rifle Association and Unified Sportsmen of Florida over his campaign flier claiming — incorrectly — that he is the only candidate in that four-person Republican race with the NRA’s “A” rating.
Darryl Daniels of Orange Park, a retired Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office jails division chief, distributed the flier — triggering a rebuke Saturday from Marion Hammer, past NRA president, and current executive director of Unified Sportsmen of Florida, which lobbies on behalf of the NRA and gun rights.
Hammer, in an email to the Times-Union, said Daniels’ flier “is absolutely and totally false.”
The NRA also has given an “A” to Craig Aldrich, retired Clay County Sheriff’s Office undersheriff, who also is a Republican candidate for county sheriff. Both the NRA and Unified Sportsmen of Florida also have endorsed Aldrich in the election likely to be decided in the Aug. 30 primary, Hammer said.
“It is only fair to Clay County voters and the other candidates in this race to expose this false assertion. Voters should indeed be careful of what they believe from a candidate who clearly has a hard time telling the truth,” Hammer wrote.
Daniels refuted Hammer’s statements — telling the newspaper that he isn’t the one telling lies. The flier, Daniels said, was distributed after Hammer assured him that he was the only one getting the “A” rating from the NRA and a related “pro-gun” designation from Unified Sportsmen.
“Emphatically, she has lied in this correspondence. … It infuriates me to be called a liar because I know I’m not,” Daniels said of Hammer’s statements.
Daniels cited assurances from Hammer during a July 12 telephone conversation that no other candidates in his race were getting the NRA or Unified Sportsmen stamp of approval. Based on those assurances, Daniels said the flier was distributed. He also said until Saturday’s email from Hammer, he was unaware those two organizations were endorsing Aldrich.
“It also infuriates me that I’m even put in this position because I asked her [Hammer] very clearly about endorsements, and she said no one in my race was getting endorsed. Then secondly, I asked did anyone else request or get an ‘A’ rating and she said no.”
Daniels stopped short of attacking Aldrich by name but said the flier controversy was dirty politics involving the candidate who got the NRA and Unified Sportsmen endorsements.
Hammer, in the email, said the two organizations “have great confidence and trust” in Aldrich.
The other two Republican candidates for Clay sheriff are James “Jimmy” Jett and Harold Rutledge.
