The Brady Campaign, the group that campaigns for stricter gun control laws, is hoping to rain on Sen. John McCain's overtures to the National Rifle Association, arguing the two are an unlikely fit for each other.

Brady President Paul Helmke, in a new blog, says the NRA must be suffering since the candidate it's stuck with having to support, McCain, has earned only a "C+" grade from the NRA.

Helmke reminds his readers exactly why some gun control groups were thrilled with McCain in the years after his failed 2000 presidential bid. That includes McCain's outspoken stance on attaching more checks to gun sales at gun shows.

But he also suggests why gun-control advocates are now unhappy — and why the NRA was able to applaud McCain, at times even almost enthusiastically, when he spoke at their convention last week: "He opposes bans on military style weapons, waiting periods, and legal accountability for negligent gun manufacturers and dealers. Instead, other than closing the gun show loophole, all he proposes is 'self-reliance.' "

And that pretty much sums up McCain. He's managed to anger both sides of this debate, like so many others, but in the end he's angered the liberals slightly more than the conservatives. He hopes that's enough to carry him to victory.

— Stephen Dinan, political and national reporter, The Washington Times