A Republican congresswoman from New York just went full throttle to politicize the Parkland school shooting by claiming that most mass shooters are Democrats.
Last week, fourteen students and three faculty members were killed at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in a tragedy that has renewed calls for stricter gun control laws across the country.
So far, Republicans have delivered the standard National Rifle Association talking points, including “thoughts and prayers,” in response.
But Rep. Claudia Tenney (R-N.Y.)became the first Republican lawmaker since the shooting to politicize it by claiming that most mass shooters are Democrats.
During a radio show interview, Tenney was discussing the Parkland shooting with host Fred Dicker when she accused Democrats of politicizing it before making a wildly inaccurate and outrageous statement.
“Obviously, there’s a lot of politics in it, and it’s interesting that so many of these people that commit the mass murders end up being Democrats, but we don’t want to, the media doesn’t talk about that either,” Tenney said.
Tenney then contended that gun owners commit the least amount of crimes.
“A lot of these legal gun owners are being targeted now,” Tenney said. “And in their demographic, they have the least amount of crimes of virtually any other demographic.”
The remarks were immediately slammed by Tenney’s 2018 Democratic opponent, state Rep. Anthony Brindisi.
“This toxic rhetoric is shameful coming from an elected official and is a new low even for Claudia Tenney,” Brindisi said. “She has disrespected the office she holds. Inserting politics into a national tragedy is beyond the pale and disgusting. She should apologize immediately to spare our region any more national embarrassment.”
After reporters asked for clarification, Tenney released a statement attacking the media and liberals.
“I am fed up with the media and liberals attempting to politicize tragedies and demonize law-abiding gun owners and conservative Americans every time there is a horrible tragedy. While we know the perpetrators of these atrocities have a wide variety of political views, my comments are in response to a question about the failure to prosecute illegal gun crime. I will continue to stand up for law-abiding citizens who are smeared by anti-gun liberal elitists.”
Even Tenney suggested that her original claim was false, but she didn’t apologize.
Conservatives like Tenney may have been misled by a viral list of mass shootings that the authors claim were committed by Democrats. But that list has been debunked by Snopes.
Frankly, lawmakers should not politicize these kinds of tragedies. We can debate our gun laws, which is the proper response, but painting political opponents as mass killers is truly twisted.
However, if Tenney really wants to play this game, then let’s point out that Parkland shooter Nikolas Cruz is a supporter of President Donald Trump, complete with a MAGA hat. Also, he bought his gun legally, which makes him a legal gun owner. You know, the same gun owner that Tenney claims commits “less crime.”
In fact, most mass shooters have bought their weapons legally, so Tenney may want to rethink her comments about gun owners committing less crimes. Because right now, they are overwhelmingly leading in the mass murder department.
Featured Image: YouTube screenshot
