On February 9, Michael Bloomberg-funded Everytown for Gun Safety took out a full page ad criticizing Governor Terry McAuliffe (D) for reversing Attorney General Mark Herring’s (D) decision to end concealed carry reciprocity with 25 states.
Everytown’s opposition to McAuliffe began on January 29–the very day he announced he was striking a compromise with the GOP-led General Assembly to keep the reciprocity in place. And the current newspaper ad is in addition to social media campaigns Everytown launched against McAuliffe last week.
Through the ad, Everytown criticizes McAuliffe for saying, “There is no evidence that anyone with a concealed carry [permit] has every harmed anyone in Virginia.” From there the group presents what they view as “false” statement after “false” statement on McAuliffe’s part. For example, they suggest the claim that he is “shutting down the gun show loophole” is “false” and that he is not telling the truth when he says he is going after “domestic abusers” who own guns.
According to The Washington Post, this ad comes after Everytown used Twitter and Facebook to push ads showing McAuliffe and the NRA’s Wayne LaPierre “side-by-side,” as if the two were now on the same team.
McAuliffe spokesman Brian Coy called the newspaper ad “misleading” and diminished Everytown’s efforts as those of “an outsider organization meddling in Virginia politics.” However, it should be noted that “at McAuliffe’s request…Everytown bankrolled $2 million in attack ads on behalf of two Democratic allies in state Senate campaigns” in 2015.
It appears Everytown was welcomed as part of Virginia politics until they became critical of McAuliffe.
AWR Hawkins is the Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News and political analyst for Armed American Radio. Follow him on Twitter: @AWRHawkins. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com.
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