Republican Rep. Dan Crenshaw fired back at his Democratic colleague Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Wednesday after she criticized his handling of firearms and assumed his friends are “likely” domestic abusers.
Crenshaw, a Texan, triggered Ocasio-Cortez when on Tuesday he responded on Twitter to the story of a young woman who had chased off five would-be robbers with her handgun.
“Situations like this story are why we protect the 2nd Amendment,” he commented.
MORE: Five Men Try to Rob Texas Woman Sitting in Car – They Weren’t Expecting She’d Pull Out Her Gun
Crenshaw went on to address the idea of universal background checks for gun buyers which has been mooted as a possible response to recent mass shootings. He does not approve.
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“With universal background checks, I wouldn’t be able to let my friends borrow my handgun when they travel alone like this,” Crenshaw said. “We would make felons out of people just for defending themselves.”
A day later, Ocasio-Cortez ― a left-wing congresswoman from New York who has advocated background checks among other gun control measures ― decided to weigh in on Crenshaw’s tweet.
Ocasio-Cortez then went further, suggesting that Crenshaw pals around with a bunch of domestic abusers.
You are a member of Congress. Why are you “lending” guns to people unsupervised who can’t pass a basic background check?
The people you’re giving a gun to have likely abused their spouse or have a violent criminal record, & you may not know it.
Why on earth would you do that? https://t.co/TQFjcLQebO
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) September 4, 2019
Twitter joins Ocasio-Cortez and Crenshaw in gun control debate
Some of Ocasio-Cortez’s fans praised her tweet, which has been “liked” 55,000 times and counting. One top reply went further, saying the bigger concern was Crenshaw’s friends committing a mass shooting himself.
I’d be more worried about his friends shooting up a synagogue. See: https://t.co/jp8ZhXAxXW
— Harpers Ferry Vet ?? (@marx_attacks_) September 4, 2019
However, many conservatives were baffled.
National Review editor Charles C. W. Cooke asked if Ocasio-Cortez was really saying Crenshaw’s friends are “likely” domestic abusers or criminals. “Why?” he wanted to know.
Just so we are clear: You think that it’s “likely” that so many of Crenshaw’s friends are domestic abusers or criminals” that he is unable to exercise judgement when deciding to whom he loans his firearms? Why?
— Charles C. W. Cooke (@charlescwcooke) September 4, 2019
Some commenters wondered where Ocasio-Cortez got off lecturing Crenshaw, a former Navy Seal and war veteran, on gun safety.
AOC is now lecturing a former Navy Seal on how to properly handle firearms. pic.twitter.com/xx2Qcw1cOq
— Anders Hagstrom (@Hagstrom_Anders) September 4, 2019
Others accused her of once again stereotyping Republicans and military service members in particular.
Awful look to assume friends of Navy SEALs "likely abuse their spouse" or are criminally violent. https://t.co/6lcFiMQ8gX
— Elliott Schwartz (@elliosch) September 4, 2019
Crenshaw finally showed up to the Twitter fight on Wednesday afternoon. After expressing disbelief that Ocasio-Cortez thinks his friends are “domestic abusers/criminals,” he offered a corrective.
“Wrong,” he said. “People lend guns to friends, esp if they don’t own a gun, for self-defense and hunting purposes.”
“This is America outside NYC,” he added.
Minutes later, Ocasio-Cortez seized the opportunity to lecture Crenshaw at great length on the often “hidden” nature of domestic violence.
“You could know an abuser & have no clue,” she said. “I’ve had friends come out to me as victims. It’s not obvious. Unsafe relationships are COMMON.”
Two tweets later, she concluded: “You wouldn’t lend a car to someone w/o a license.Why lend a gun to someone w/o a background check?”
Herein lies an important point abt domestic abuse: most of it is hidden. You could know an abuser & have no clue.
I’ve had friends come out to me as victims. It’s not obvious. Unsafe relationships are COMMON.
That’s why House Dems passed closing the boyfriend loophole in VAWA.
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) September 4, 2019
Domestic abusers can be master manipulators. Plus, domestic abuse is a HUGE indicator for gun violence.
That’s why “vouching for friend” isn’t a substitute for a background check.
You wouldn’t lend a car to someone w/o a license.Why lend a gun to someone w/o a background check?
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) September 4, 2019
A history of violent rhetorical disagreement
Crenshaw and Ocasio-Cortez, both first-term members of Congress, have repeatedly tangled on Twitter about whatever the hot-button political issue of the moment happens to be.
Gun control has been in the news because of a mass shooting Saturday in Odessa and Midland, Texas. Democrats, including 2020 presidential contenders, have renewed their advocacy for background checks, “red flag” laws, gun buybacks and the like.
However, gun rights advocates have pointed out that the Odessa shooter had been barred under federal law from owning or buying firearms because a court had previously determined he was mentally unfit. Authorities are investigating how Seth Ator, 36, bought the rifle he used to kill seven people and wound 22 others.
On Sunday, before that news broke, President Donald Trump argued that background checks would not have prevented any of the recent mass shootings.
“Over the last five, six, or seven years, no matter how strong you need the background checks, it wouldn’t have stopped any of it,” he told reporters.
Trump has another plan for dealing with mass murderers. According to an administration official, the president has the Justice Department drafting legislation to expedite expedite the death penalty for such people.
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