Even though he has hewed to the NRA line on the issue of guns, President Trump is getting some strong pushback from gun owners who don’t want to see any changes made to the laws which govern weapons in the United States.
On Saturday morning, the president again called for banning bump stocks, which allow a semiautomatic gun to become more like a fully automatic weapon. He retweeted himself from two days ago:
I will be strongly pushing Comprehensive Background Checks with an emphasis on Mental Health. Raise age to 21 and end sale of Bump Stocks! Congress is in a mood to finally do something on this issue – I hope!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 22, 2018
That one tweet has set off a firestorm among gun advocates. As CBS Miami reports:
“Trump’s flirtation with a set of modest gun control measures drew swift condemnation from gun groups, hunters and sportsmen who banked on the president to be a stalwart opponent to any new gun restrictions.
“In his pledge to make schools safer and curb gun violence after the massacre at a Florida high school, gun advocates see a weakening resolve from the man they voted for in droves and spent millions to elect.”
Tony Fabian, president of the Colorado Sports Shooting Association, commented:
“Out in the firearms community there is a great feeling of betrayal and abandonment, because of the support he was given in his campaign for president.”
Gun Owners of America sent out a message to its 1.5 million members this week urging them to let the White House know they don’t want to see any kind of restrictions on guns. The headline on the message reads:
“Tell Trump to OPPOSE All Gun Control!”
Brandon Combs, president of the California-based Firearms Policy Coalition, said Trump is starting to sound like a typical politician:
“If there was an art of the deal, then this would be a deal breaker.
“Gun owners have been burned too many times over the years. Politicians do whatever they want when they get into office.”
Featured Image Via YouTube Screengrab
