California Democrat Blames Second Amendment Supporters for Las Vegas Shooting

Anthony Rendon (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)
Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press

California State Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Paramount) blamed Second Amendment supporters for the mass murder of almost 60 Americans in Las Vegas on Sunday in a statement on Monday.

According to a Facebook post Monday on his official page, Rendon said:

The police say the shooter appeared to have acted alone. That’s not true. Every gun lobbyist and the politicians who do their bidding were all in that room with him. We have to make this stop, and we can with courage and political will. #LasVegas

Calling for stricter gun control after a mass shooting is nothing new for Democrat politicians, but directly blaming supporters of the Second Amendment is one step beyond the norm.  

Shortly after the Las Vegas shooting hit the news wires, Hillary Clinton was roundly criticized for tweeting a much less incendiary attack on gun rights advocates:  

The crowd fled at the sound of gunshots. Imagine the deaths if the shooter had a silencer, which the NRA wants to make easier to get.

After the San Bernardino terrorist attack in December 2015 that claimed the lives of 14 Californians, Gov. Jerry Brown went on the attack, criticizing Arizona and Nevada’s lenient gun laws (even though the terror suspect used guns purchased under California’s extremely strict gun laws).

The Sacramento Bee reported the heated exchange on December 6th, 2015:

Brown, asked in Paris on Saturday if stricter gun control laws were warranted following the mass shooting in San Bernardino, said, “California has some of the toughest gun control laws of any state. And Nevada and Arizona are wide open, so that’s a gigantic back door through which any terrorist can walk.”

At the time, Nevada’s Republican governor, Brian Sandoval, fired right back through a spokesman:  “This type of political rhetoric is discouraging to hear at a time when all Americans are looking for thoughtful, honest leadership,”

On Monday, Brown issued a much more somber statement in response to the Las Vegas massacre — without the partisan finger-pointing of Rendon’s comment — in the wake of the deadliest mass shooting in American history:
Our prayers and deepest sympathies are with the families and loved ones of those killed and injured in last night’s tragic and senseless shooting and we stand with the people of Nevada in this difficult time.
Nevada governor Sandoval’s reaction is still consistent. Although he has “signed a Declaration of Emergency for Clark County following the mass shooting on the Las Vegas Strip,” according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Sandoval is not calling for more gun control, only for less political rhetoric and more prayer:  “We have to stop and pray for the families and for the victims. … There’s not much we can do, but we can learn.”
Tim Donnelly is a former California State Assemblyman and Author, currently on a book tour for his new book: Patriot Not Politician: Win or Go Homeless.  He also ran for governor in 2014.

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