In a move that shocks even the most cynical among us, a fundraising letter from the National Association for Gun Rights?was mailed out from Sen. Rand Paul’s (R-KY) office?with?a blatant, despicable lie on the envelope — and it was a deliberate and false misquote of Pres. Obama. Here is a photograph of the letter, which was posted on the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence Facebook page.
The quote was taken completely out of context from a speech that Pres. Obama gave after the Newtown, Conn. shootings. The quote was not about banning guns, but about engaging citizens. Here is the original quote, from WhiteHouse.gov:
“In the coming weeks, I will use whatever power this office holds to engage my fellow citizens — from law enforcement to mental health professionals to parents and educators — in an effort aimed at preventing more tragedies like this.? Because what choice do we have?? We can’t accept events like this as routine.? Are we really prepared to say that we’re powerless in the face of such carnage, that the politics are too hard? ?Are we prepared to say that such violence visited on our children year after year after year is somehow the price of our freedom?”
There is no [TO BAN GUNS] anywhere in that speech.
Here is a screenshot of the letter from the NAGR website:
How can Rand Paul and the rest of the liars on the right?get away with this, you ask? Because their followers fall into one of the following camps:
- Those who are too stupid to know the difference.
- Those who are too lazy to fact check.
- Those who know that it is a lie or that it may be a lie, but they just don’t care. They want to win at their little games, keep their big guns that overcompensate for their small….other things,?and the costs to truth and democracy concerns them not.
You can listen to the entire speech that Pres. Obama gave in Newtown in the video below.
h/t BuzzFeed
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Tiffany Willis is the founder and editor-in-chief of Liberal America. An unapologetic member of the Christian Left, she has spent most of her career actively working with ?the least of these? and disadvantaged and oppressed populations. She’s passionate about their struggles. To stay on top of topics she discusses,?like her?Facebook page,?follow her on Twitter, or?connect with her via LinkedIn. She also has a?grossly neglected personal blog?and a?literary quotes blog that is a labor of love. Find her somewhere and join the discussion.
