In a bid to raise money to promote hunting rights and the removal of protection for predator species, a new group co-founded by Utahn Don Peay is selling $10 tickets for a chance to spend five days with Donald Trump Jr. on a guided elk hunt in Utah.
Hunter Nation recently posted the fall foray with the president’s son among its “Dream Hunt Sweepstakes,” billing Trump Jr. as a “modern-day Teddy Roosevelt,” the Republican president closely associated with the rise of conservation in the United States more than a century ago.
Both Trump Jr. and Roosevelt are also known for a shared love of trophy hunting, a practice that today provokes controversy and derision in some quarters.
“You will have to go a long way to find a bigger advocate for our hunting lifestyle and a more passionate hunter and conservationist than Don Jr. The opportunity to share a hunting camp with him is truly priceless,” the post reads. “Gain a new perspective on real-life conservation from one [of] the leading experts on the subject, all while you hunt one of the most prized big game animals on earth.”
Peay, founder of Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife and BigGame Forever, promoted Donald Trump Sr.'s presidential campaign in Utah. He started Hunter Nation last year with Outdoor Channel host Keith Mark.
“Our mission is to preserve and protect our nation’s hunting heritage and the traditions associated with hunting as a way of life,” its website states. “We are committed to unifying all hunters and creating a nationwide voice to defend our hunting rights. We support wildlife and habitat conservation, and we support ethical hunters in the legal pursuit of all game species of their choice.”
Most of the website is devoted to selling hunting trips with celebrities, military heroes and legendary guides in Utah and other revered hunting destinations in North America.
The Utah elk post does not name the guide or location of the hunt with Trump Jr. It would take place this autumn. Lodging, guides and meals are included in the package worth $5,000. The drawing will be held April 4.
Also on sale are sweepstakes tickets for Utah hunting trips with Mossback Outfitters for elk; with guide Wade Lemmon for black bear and mountain lion; with Ryan Foutz for shiras moose and elk; and mule deer with R&K Hunting and Jason Hairston, a successful hunting apparel entrepreneur who recently died.
Hairston was a retired football star who took his life Sept. 4 at age 47 as he struggled with deepening symptoms associated with chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), according to his widow’s news media interviews. The founder of KUIU killed himself shortly after returning from a Canada hunting trip with Trump Jr.
Hunter Nation incorporated as a nonprofit last March in Kansas by that state’s secretary of state, Kris Kobach, a prominent Trump supporter. Former Utah Rep. Jason Chaffetz, Utah investment-management executive Craig Simpson and gun-loving rock legend Ted Nugent are also affiliated with the group.
