Did the NRA cross the line with its ad referencing Obama’s children?
Hours before the president unveiled sweeping gun control laws, the nation’s biggest gun lobby swiped at the president and his family in a new video commercial.
The National Rifle Association is making its attack on the president personal. Just hours before President Obama unveiled sweeping reforms to gun laws, the NRA released an ad referencing his children and calling the president a hypocrite. “Are the president’s kids more important than yours?” the video says. “Then why is he skeptical about putting armed security in our schools when his kids are protected by armed guards at their schools? Mr. Obama demands the wealthy pay their fair share of taxes, but he’s just another elitist hypocrite when it comes to a fair share of security.” The White House called the ad “repugnant and cowardly.” During his speech on Wednesday, Obama addressed the NRA and its supporters in Congress, telling lawmakers to consider the safety of Americans over an A rating from the gun lobby. The president also urged Congress to ban assault rifles; pass universal background checks on people buying guns; and approve Todd Jones, the acting head of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, as its permanent chief. After the speech, Obama signed 23 executive orders intended to reduce gun violence. “Let’s do the right thing for them [the victims of gun violence] and for this country that we love so much,” he said before declaring, “I’m going to sign these orders.” The NRA has not responded to the president’s remarks in a statement issued two hours after the speech. Here’s what it said:
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