Matt1911...
"would getting as many non res permits as possible help,or hurt our causes?"
Personally I think that getting as many permits as you can could only help. I have a Massachuetts LTC but have recently gotten a NH non-resident permit and will be looking at other states as well.
The only down-side I think anyone could argue is that by getting a license , any license, "you are supporting illegal restrictions on our Second Amendment rights". Well, I think that is a weak arguement at the very best. The license requirements are firmly in place in most places and are not going away, at least not any time soon.