Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) unveiled his retort to the National Rifle Assocation on Thursday, a 30-second spot in which he defends his support of legislation that would have strengthened background checks on gun buyers.
The ad, which debuted on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” shows Manchin hunting in a rural setting. It was Manchin’s formal rebuttal to an ad from the NRA, which slammed the West Virginia Democrat for co-authoring an amendment to expand background checks.
“I’m a lifetime NRA member, but I don’t walk in lockstep with the NRA’s Washington leadership, this administration or any other special interest group,” Manchin asserts in the ad. “West Virginia, you know me. I haven’t changed. And you know I’ve always fought for our gun rights.”
He closes the ad by urging voters to call the NRA to “tell them to support criminal background checks.” An aide to Manchin said earlier this week that the senator’s ad buy will least match the NRA’s ad buy.
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