Posted Friday, May 18, 2012 --- 8:35 a.m.

WAUSAU, Wis. (AP) -- A national outdoor gear retailer left the National Rifle Association scrambling when it bowed out of two politically-charged events this week.

The St. Paul, Minn.-based Gander Mountain canceled NRA meetings in Rothschild and Eau Claire. The meetings would have focused on support for Republican Gov. Scott Walker in the upcoming recall election.

In a posting on its Facebook page, Gander Mountain says it's been a longtime partner of the NRA, but that its customers are diverse and have varied interests, so it established a policy recently which prohibits it from hosting events on behalf of political causes or candidates.

NRA spokeswoman Stephanie Samford tells WAOW-TV (http://bit.ly/KyInS2 ) the organization has held a number of events at Gander Mountain in the past at locations across the country.

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Information from: WAOW-TV, http://www.waow.com

Copyright 2012. The Associated Press.