Rifle Purchase Age Increase ‘On The Table’ For RNC, Despite NRA Opposition

US President Donald Trump speaks after his introduction by RNC Chairwoman Ronna Romney McDaniel at a fundraising breakfast in a restaurant in New York, New York on December 2, 2017. / AFP PHOTO / MANDEL NGAN (... US President Donald Trump speaks after his introduction by RNC Chairwoman Ronna Romney McDaniel at a fundraising breakfast in a restaurant in New York, New York on December 2, 2017. / AFP PHOTO / MANDEL NGAN (Photo credit should read MANDEL NGAN/AFP/Getty Images) MORE LESS
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Republican National Committee chairwoman Ronna McDaniel told The Washington Examiner that the committee was weighing whether to support President Donald Trump’s proposal of increasing the age for rifle purchases from 18 to 21-years-old.

“I don’t know. We’ll see where that goes. I think it’s on the table,” she told the Washington Examiner in an article published Monday. “We have to look at the whole picture.”

She said Trump has been “thoughtful” in his propositions following the latest school shooting in Parkland, Florida that left 17 people dead at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School after a 19-year-old former student attacked the school. 

“I think the President’s been very thoughtful in what he’s proposing,” she said. “He’s listening to these parents. I think universally, we want to make sure our schools are safe. Period.”

In addition to voicing support for raising the purchasing age for rifles — which the National Rifle Association opposes — Trump has also called for arming teachers, comprehensive background check reform and for a ban on bump stocks, an accessory used to make a semi-automatic weapon function like an automatic rifle. This device was used in the Las Vegas attack at a country music festival last year, when a gunman killed 50-plus people. 

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