Maybe this is what that NRA board member was talking about when he said he wanted no part of a pro-gun rally being held today in Albany, N.Y.
Photos of the rally have begun to trickle out, showing thousands of people — including Donald Trump — rally against gun control. A puppet depicting New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D), who signed the first post-Newtown gun control measure last year, has gotten most of the attention.
An activist evidently invited demonstrators to “spank” the Cuomo puppet.
Guy with Cuomo puppet and rifle shaped paddle: “Who wants to spank the governor?” pic.twitter.com/bSbBWBkZtP
— Bryan Terry (@Terry2790) April 1, 2014
Another shot shows the size of the crowd.
Pro gun rally draws up to 2000 pic.twitter.com/UderBjVEUL
— ken lovett (@klnynews) April 1, 2014
And here’s Trump.
Here’s @realDonaldTrump at the #NYSAFEAct gun rally. The crowd is pumped up by his speech against the gun law. pic.twitter.com/bnJM2g2QFX
— Haley Viccaro (@HRViccaro) April 1, 2014
Thomas King, a member of the NRA’s national board and the president of president of the New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, expressed concern about the “contentious and threatening” rhetoric at such events. That’s why he opted not to attend Tuesday’s gathering in Albany.
“Let all these other groups go out and do what they want to do, because they don’t want to listen anyway,” King told the New York Daily News. “I just don’t want to be a party to anything that may happen.”