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Incendiary Image of the Day: Todd Staples Aims a Gun Edition

Robert Farago - comments No comments

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rhSlQOjqiNU

I saw this ad for Texas Republican Lt. Governor hopeful Todd Staples a couple of weeks ago when it first hit the intertubes. I didn’t think much of it – except that it reminded me of West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin’s campaign ad. You know; the one where the then-future author of the post Newtown universal background check bill used a hunting rifle to shoot the Cap and Trade bill while touting his NRA ‘A’ rating and promising to protect his constituents’ Second Amendment protected rights. Anyway . . .

today’s New York Times is aghast that candidate Staples would aim a gun in a gun store while promising to “fight Obama’s liberal agenda.” Here’s the outrage from the Times’s carefully selected outrager, one Kathleen Hall Jamieson, director of the left-leaning Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania and “an expert on political discourse.”

Though several of the Texas ads feature candidates with guns, Mr. Staples’s is perhaps the most striking, showing him taking a gun off a rack and aiming it as he vows to “fight Obama’s liberal agenda.”

“The question is: Why would need a gun to fight an agenda? You don’t shoot a policy or shoot an agenda — you fight an agenda with words,” Ms. Jamieson said. “It’s either a gratuitous visual, or trying to suggest that he takes this very seriously, and centering a gun is a metaphor.”

Mr. Staples said his 30-second spot was simply intended to underscore his willingness to fight for states’ rights and stand up to government overreach.

“What was so inflammatory was his proclamation during the State of the Union that he will run around Congress issuing executive fiat,” Mr. Staples said, referring to Mr. Obama’s promise to use executive actions to circumvent Congress when possible. “These are fighting words to Texans.”

The footage of him with the gun, he added, was simply an allusion to his promise to defend the Second Amendment rights of Texans. “We want to remind those in Washington that the best 911 is a .223,” he said, referring to a .223-caliber rifle.

Yay! The Times got it right! The caliber bit, of course. The rest of it, well, they found someone to conclude the article in a way that paints this anti-government “grumbling” as Texas “extremism.” Note to the Times: I don’t think so.

But don’t expect to see the tone of Texas ads thaw anytime soon. Running in a Republican primary in Texas, said Will Feltus, senior vice president for research and planning at National Media Inc., a Republican media-buying company, “is just as extreme as running in a Democratic primary in San Francisco.”

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Robert Farago

Robert Farago is the former publisher of The Truth About Guns (TTAG). He started the site to explore the ethics, morality, business, politics, culture, technology, practice, strategy, dangers and fun of guns.

0 thoughts on “Incendiary Image of the Day: Todd Staples Aims a Gun Edition”

  1. I’m a fan of the 40. I’m impartial to the argument of the 40 being an “in-between” round. Yes, it’s in between the 9 and 45…BUT I don’t anyone that carries both the 9 and 45 AT THE SAME TIME. So if you don’t carry the 9 and 45 at the same time, then why not go with what’s in between…a good comprimise if you will.

    Also, IMO if anyone complains about the snap then I’d recommend to practice more. Personally the extra snap of a 40 in comparison to the 9mm is minimal.

    Reply
    • Ever wreck your vehicle? Or rear end another vehicle? Was anyone hurt?

      If so, please forfeit your vehicle and license, all privileges to drive are hereby revoked, immediately.

      You’re obviously not fit own a vehicle, nor drive one. Nor are any of your family members living within your home…

      You’re a dangerous person and someone could’ve been killed.

      Yeah, it’s kind of like that.

      Reply
  2. “Though several of the Texas ads feature candidates with guns,…”

    Yeah, every one that I’ve seen down here has a pro 2A edge, 7 by my count. I’m pretty sure there are a few democrats from the valley who also pose with firearms in their ads. Haven’t seen a single anti 2A ad from anyone. I thought I might be dreaming, but then someone here helpfully reminded me that Texas is not gun friendly.

    Reply
  3. Your right kathy, he should have had 30 little school kids around him, pretending he was protecting them. Something you would know nothing about.

    Reply
  4. I was in grade school when he was running for the Texas House of Representatives, he actually visited my class to talk to us about our system of government.

    We just finished early voting for the primaries, and it does seem like all of the Republican candidates are trying to that they are further right than the other guys. I don’t care for some of the stances that he has chosen to take, but when he specifically mentioned efforts to get rid of legislator carve outs, he earned my vote.

    Reply
  5. Is that Capt. Obvious?

    Listen, all that sounds o.k. but for most people it’s not very practical. And he’s assuming that you won’t be busted or removed from your house. And he’s assuming you had lots of firearms to spread around to other locations. And it seems to me there will be lots of backup for the people that are at your door. Maybe they do a full multi dwelling sweep of your area and your other locations are also infringed upon.

    To many varibles that he doesn’t cover. Just my opinion.

    Reply
  6. When Home Depot started passing hi-intensity grow light purchases to the DEA and pipe purchases to the FBI I gave up on an pretense of a private life in America. These guys who purchase 80% lowers think they have somehow circumvented the system. SURPRISE 🙂 the govt knows exactly what you have bought.

    Reply
  7. Your turn, government.

    If things continue like this, with both sides escalating and not blinking, then we are going to see violence in Connecticut on the order of Ruby Ridge x100.

    Reply
  8. So how is this any different from Rob’s new policy? As I recall, anyone who’s commented against Rob’s new “no dissent” policy has been told “It’s Rob’s page, if you don’t like it then LEAVE!” – so why the hypocrisy here?

    Reply
  9. as a LEO in MI, where there has been a handgun registration for as long as I can remember, the only use that I see it has is being able to gat serial #’s for stolen guns because the owner never writes them down. ever. going to a call like a Domestic or a Barricaded person they will cross check to see if there are any had guns Registered to the adress…… but that mean little because long guns aren’t registered.

    I am happy that we are working our way through legislation towards getting rid of the registration.

    If I was told to go take folks guns away, (unless for a good legal reason, like they flipped a nut and had to be involentarily hospitalized) I wouldn’t. I don’t have to obey an unlawful order.

    Reply

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