President embraces role of gun rights champion

WASHINGTON — After the Parkland school shooting in Florida two years ago, President Trump chided Republican lawmakers for being too “scared” of the National Rifle Association to tighten gun laws — then backed away from the idea.

After backtoback mass shootings in Ohio and Texas in 2019, Trump embraced calls for “strong background checks” — only to backpedal once again.

Now, as he primes the pump on his 2020 reelection effort,

Trump is going allin on embracing the mantle of gun rights champion, a stark turn from earlier moments in his presidency when he toyed with the idea of pushing Congress to enact stricter gun laws.

There was no public discussion of tighter gun laws when Trump welcomed Parkland families to the White House for a private meeting on Monday, four days before the twoyear anniversary of the rampage that left 17 dead. Instead, administration officials unveiled a website intended to help educators, parents and law enforcement address threats to school safety.

In recent weeks, Trump has repeatedly warned supporters at his rallies that Democrats “will take your guns away.” Last month, he labeled Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam a “whack job” as gun rights advocates protested the Democratic governor’s moves to tighten gun laws in the aftermath of a mass shooting in Virginia Beach.

Drawing a straight line from gun rights to presidential politics, Trump tweeted that Democrats in the state “will take your guns away. Republicans will win Virginia in 2020. Thank you Dems!”

And on Monday night, as he came to the apex of an hourlong campaign speech in New Hampshire, Trump framed his supporters’ Second Amendment right to bear arms as being as precious as the rights to privacy, free speech and religious freedom.

Campaign officials believe the effort could help put states like Minnesota, New Mexico and New Hampshire in play.

Trump’s advisers believe his consistent efforts to spotlight his credentials as a Second Amendment warrior can help him draw a contrast with the eventual Democratic presidential nominee. The top tier of Democratic candidates have made bolstering gun restrictions a key part of their platforms.

But gun control advocates feel emboldened after the 2018 midterm elections in which more than 30 NRAbacked Republican candidates lost their races.