Just a day after Congressional Democrats narrowly beat back a Senate gun rights amendment to the Defense authorization bill, the National Rifle Association flexed its muscles Thursday and announced its opposition to Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor.NRA Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre and Executive Director Chris Cox sent a letter Thursday to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), saying the vote on Sotomayor will be considered in future NRA candidate evaluations. “Unfortunately, Judge Sotomayor’s judicial record and testimony during the Senate Judiciary Committee hearings clearly demonstrate a hostile view of the Second Amendment and the fundamental right of self-defense guaranteed under the U.S. Constitution,— the pair wrote. The NRA’s decision comes just as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the biggest business trade association, said it would support Sotomayor. The chamber cited Sotomayor’s “fair and evenhanded— testimony regarding laws affecting American business as the basis for its endorsement. “Through several years of experience as a law firm partner representing business interests, Judge Sotomayor has spent time considering the litigation environment from our point of view,— chamber President Tom Donohue said in a statement released Thursday. “With her unique experience as both a trial and appellate judge, Judge Sotomayor has seen firsthand the tremendous burdens that our legal system places on businesses,— he added.