Donald Trump issued a very interesting tweet today that looks like a significant break in the typical conservative ideology of gun ownership.
Trump loves to brag about how he’s the earliest GOP candidate to get the NRA’s endorsement, and the Orlando massacre has given him plenty of chances to talk about why he’s right about guns and everything else. This comes as a stark contrast to President Obama and Hillary Clinton, who have both argued that the devastating nightclub attack is the latest sign that the country needs more gun laws and stronger enforcement of them.
Trump’s position on guns is a bit hard to definitively pin down, considering how certain past statements have diverted from the GOP’s usual norm against gun control. Furthermore, there’s been a lot of gun ownership discussions recently over whether Omar Mateen and suspects like him should be allowed to legally buy guns or board a plane when they’ve been under FBI investigation in the past.
Both of these points combined, you get this tweet:
I will be meeting with the NRA, who has endorsed me, about not allowing people on the terrorist watch list, or the no fly list, to buy guns.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 15, 2016
Cue the headspinning.
UPDATE: 12:13 PM EST: The NRA tweeted a response to Trump.
Happy to meet @realdonaldtrump. Our position is no guns for terrorists—period. Due process & right to self-defense for law-abiding Americans
— NRA (@NRA) June 15, 2016
This comes as an interesting follow-up from this tweet the other day.
Restrictions like bans on gun purchases by people on "watch lists" are ineffective, unconstitutional, or both https://t.co/MQfbYnTDAE
— NRA (@NRA) June 14, 2016
[Image via screengrab]
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