The US National Rifle Association is furious about President Obama’s moves to clamp down on firearms and attack the “rights” of gun owners.
The NRA was highly political in the lead-up to last year’s US election, stridently opposing Obama and warning the US public that his re-election would herald a push for significant gun control measures.
The Sandy Hook massacre has been Obama’s cue to start his long-predicted crackdown, and he promised to use “whatever weight this office holds” to make it happen.
In answer, the NRA has promised the “fight of the century” against Obama, and already both sides have been scathing of each other.
The shooting organisation is using the phrase “Stand and fight” as its motto for the confrontation.
The NRA released a TV commercial accusing Obama of elitism and hypocrisy for making schools gun-free zones while at the same time having armed security guards look after his own children.
The White House responded, accusing the NRA ad of being “repugnant and cowardly”.
Obama announced his gun-control initiatives while surrounded by children, and said their safety was the first priority: “This is how we will be judged,” he said.
Since the Sandy Hook tragedy, the NRA has signed up 100,000 new members. However, two polls (here and here) have reported that the NRA’s approval among the US public has for the first time been more negative than positive towards it.
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