RNC targets Barack Obama in gun ad as John McCain talks to the NRA

It's almost like they had Friday planned out as "Second Amendment Day" on the campaign trail.

Barack Obama started the day in Watertown, S.D., where he wrangled with John McCain and President Bush over foreign policy and appeasement. But he also talked about guns -- just hours before McCain was to address the National Rifle Assn. convention in Louisville, Ky. And the focus made it clear that McCain hopes, if Obama is the Democratic nominee, to exploit Obama's electoral weakness with white, working-class men.

Our colleague Nicholas Riccardi is with Obama and reports that the Illinois senator staked out his turf early today -- seemingly anticipating both McCain and the Republican National Committee, which launched a Web ad today on Obama and guns. Said Obama:

"There are a lot of Republicans who are mainly Republicans because they're worried the Democrats are going to take away their guns. In Chicago, we've had a lot of deaths as a consequence of illegal guns and gang shootings. In a lot of the country you've got a lot of illegal guns falling into the hands of criminals and gangbangers and people with mental problems. I want to restrict their access to guns. But I will never take away the rights of lawful gun owners to hunt, to sport-shooting, to protect their family."

Then came McCain. Our colleague Noam Levey is with him, and his story on McCain and the NRA will be in Saturday's paper and available online later tonight. Levey reports McCain mocked Obama before the gun enthusiasts:

"It seems every election, politicians who support restrictions on the Second Amendment dress up in camouflage and pose with guns to demonstrate they care about hunters, even though few gun owners fall for such obvious political theater. After Sen. Obama made his unfortunate comment -- an inaccurate and wrong comment -- that Pennsylvanians 'cling to guns and religion' out of bitterness, Sen. Clinton quickly affirmed her support for the Second Amendment. That drew Senator Obama's derision. 'She's running around talking about how this is an insult to sportsmen, how she values the Second Amendment,' he said. 'Like she's on the duck blind every Sunday, packin' a six-shooter!' Someone should tell Sen. Obama that ducks are usually hunted with shotguns."

Which brings us to the RNC and its new web ad.

-- Scott Martelle

Comments

[demsaredumb]

No wonder the democrats have been unable to win back the White House for so many years... they are DUMB.

They fight amonst themselves in Congress, so they get nothing done. They have the crab mentality.

If they were smarter, they would not allow Obama to talk like he's their candidate, cos now Republicans can hone their attacks on him.

If they were smarter, they would keep us guessing (lol)

[We Love Ha HA]

Should All Democrats in the Military be arrested as Suspected Enemy combatants and sent to Guantanamo and held in detention until the War on Terror is declared "Mission Accomplished" by Bush / Cheney??

They are entitled to do that under the Patriot Act.

That seems to be what Bush and McCain are suggesting?..

Are the Republicans planning a Military Coup?

Ignore the Patriot Act at your Peril.

It gives the incumbent President almost GOD LIKE Powers. to define who and who is not an "Enemy of the State".

Be Warned!. Be Afraid!

You gave theses people theses enormous powers, get ready to have them used against you..

Ha HA..................

[Ron]

That's John McCain for you ... attack and retreat.......
I hope that people really see him for who he is ........
What did he call his wife in public ? It starts with a C and ends with a T and the middle letters are UN.

[Bill Rush]

Do McCain and other Republicans think
that criminals, gangbangers, and people
with mental problems should have the
right to own guns?

[John]

If the NRA represents American values, then screw America!

[Deward Bowles]

I own a handgun and believe that the right to have guns stems from enabling the citizens of this country to protect themselves from the Government trying to take away the bill of rights guaranteed in our Constitution. That being said Bush and his policy are the worst offender of the rights of American citizens of any president ever in the history of the United States, therefore he and his policy should be who gun owners should be concerned about. McCain has suggested packing the Supreme Court with even more judges who would continue to allow politicians to use the Constitution as toilet paper and set the rights of citizens back 50 years. I can't follow that logic and this is a much greater threat to my gun ownership than anything I can think of Senator Obama has done.

Reasonable and prudent restrictions on gun use and proliferation are not a problem for me and this can be demonstrated by the outrageous remark by Huckabee suggesting Obama should be assassinated as a joke in front of the NRA.

[john]

Really? This is their powerful attack ad? I am a hand gun and rifle owner, and this ad gives me the creeps, not for Obama, but for its creepy militia made feel.

I'm not entirely happy with Obama's views on guns, but I know he is not going to try to take my guns away from me. Assuming things continue the way they are now, I'll vote for him in November.

[Sidney McCain]

The diff is Obama is pointing out fact whereas the RNC is twisting a gaffe around. That's so 2004. It won't hold this time around.

[Paul]

I have to hand it to the Republicans: They bring up the same arguments up like clockwork in each election. How many elections do they think these rerun arguments are going to work though? Dredging up the good old God, gays, and guns issues will not fly this time around. (They might have if the Republicans hadn't hosed up the country so badly.) Now they talk of "re-branding" their party. Spoken like a true marketing department.....yep, they need to "re-brand" themselves alright. They don't even realize that simply using that term is an insult to voters. We're not buying a friggin' box of cereal, and if we were, you'd be the same stale fluff in a different flag-wrapped box. Ptooey!

[tom]

Same NRA convention where Chuckleby made the joke about assassinating Obama? Hmm....

[Diana]

I rather take my chances with President McCain whom I feel will defend this country against foreign and domestic enemies. I don't want to give Barack Hussein Obama the opportunity to arm his Chicago corrupt associates, wife, old and new pastor, sixties radical terrorist friends, and 92% African-Americans voting for him to overthrow our government.

To Ron, 6:22 p.m. What did you think of Barack Hussein Obama giving Hillary Clinton the finger? The incident you're talking about was written in a article by Huffington, which all they write is trash.

[Malama Makena]

Hillary learned the hard way that the more negative she was, the more it played into Obama's message of change - change the way we run campaigns, change the dialog in Washington.

Now here come the Republicans. Obviously, they weren't paying attention to the primaries. They come right out attacking, just like they've always done.

The more they attack, the more the 2008 election will move toward a nationwide landslide of historic proportions. EVERYONE will vote for change!

[ArchiesBoy]

Evidently Martelle is a gun-owner, else he wouldn't have given the Repubs a free shot at Obama by running that movie clip. But think about it: people who can't walk from the bedroom to the bathroom without their precious gun are precisely the people who shouldn't have them.

[joseph marcucilli]

So, we want a wall to protect us from terrorist but it is ok to own all sorts of semi--automatic weaponry,Why not put rocket launchers on the market so that at least we have a shot at bringing down a plane of 2nd amendment advocates.

[Native Angeleno]

To Diana -

You're a Walking Talking Points Memo.
Can't you come up with any thing on your own...or something at least truthful?

[Anna]

Obama might be half asleep at times. Maby that's why he misspeak. I Notice that sometime Obama looks a little dazed or sleepy.

[Jean]

Diana I agree witn you. I'll vote McCain any day instead of Barack Hussien Obama. At times Obama look like he's still using hard drugs because he changes his story ,forget a lot, look tired and dont know where he is. This is scary.

[mashkiki]

Again, posters here want to convince people that the mere possession of a gun ensures violence. As the saying goes, "Guns don't kill people, people kill people". If you believe that guns kill people, then whenever you misspell a word, you can blame it on your pencil.

[Josh in Seattle]

This is the GOP/NRA strategy?

"So 2004" - Sidney McCain - Nice!

Obama 2008 -2012!!!