The National Rifle Association posted an ad to its website criticizing President Barack Obama's skepticism towards putting armed guards in schools, citing the hypocrisy that Obama's own children are protected by such guards. The ad came just as Obama was set to announce Wednesday his administration's recommendations for gun control.
Calls for stricter gun laws have gotten louder in Washington and across the country following the December shooting of 20 children at Sandy Hook Elementary, and Obama appointed Vice President Joe Biden head of a task force to investigate what steps the country can take to prevent such massacres in the future. The ad attacking Obama's children references the NRA proposal in response to the shooting, which was to place armed guards in all schools to protect students.
[See a collection of political cartoons on gun control and gun rights.]
The video asks "Are the president's kids more important than yours?" and then goes on:
Then why is he skeptical about putting armed security in our schools when his kids are protected by armed guards at their school? 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.
On Wednesday the White House responded to the ad, with Press Secretary Jay Carney saying, "Most Americans agree that a president's children should not be used as pawns in a political fight ... But to go so far as to make the safety of the president's children the subject of an attack ad is repugnant and cowardly."
The video posted on the gun rights organization's website doesn't show any pictures of Obama's daughters, aged 14 and 11, but does show pictures of Obama, Biden, and other gun control-advocates like California Sen. Dianne Feinstein and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg. The NRA says 250,000 new members have joined since the December shooting in Newtown, Conn., and calls for stricter gun control only lead to more people signing up.
[Read the U.S. News Debate: Should There Be More Armed Guards in Schools?]
"I would say that every time President Obama opens his mouth and Sen. [Dianne] Feinstein opens her mouth and they talk about gun bans and restricting the rights of law abiding Americans, people pay attention to that and sign up," said NRA Public Affairs Director Andrew Arulanandam.
The recommendations Obama announced Wednesday include bans on high-capacity ammunition magazines and assault weapons, as well as stricter background check laws and education and mental health proposals.
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