DC congresswoman calls Rubio a hypocrite over age limits for rifle purchases

Washington, D.C.’s congressional delegate, Eleanor Holmes Norton (D), is calling Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) a hypocrite for supporting a ban on people under 18 years of age buying rifles while backing legislation that would end such a ban in the District of Columbia.

Rubio said during a February CNN town hall a week after the Parkland, Fla., school shooting that he would support raising to 21 the age to purchase rifles. 

However, Norton points out that D.C. already has a law that prevents minors from buying rifles and Rubio was the main senator pushing legislation to get it abolished.

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“Rubio’s gun bill should be a public embarrassment as well as a personal embarrassment to him,” Norton told The Associated Press.

For Norton, Rubio’s support for ending the D.C. law is nothing more than an attempt to get on the National Rifle Association’s (NRA) good side.

Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser (D) has challenged Rubio to withdraw the bill. The Florida senator responded with a letter saying that he simply wants to “bring District of Columbia laws related to firearm sales in line with federal law.”

Bower posted the letter to Twitter with handwritten notes that hit Rubio for “undermining the safety of our residents just to improve your NRA score” and calling his actions “the epitome of hypocrisy.”

Hey @marcorubio,

A few things — 8, to be exact. ⬇️ #EnoughIsEnough #NoMarcoNo pic.twitter.com/Lg0dfErOkC

— Mayor Muriel Bowser (@MayorBowser) March 19, 2018

Rubio — who has an A-plus rating from the NRA — introduced the bill aimed at D.C. firearm laws in 2015 and again in 2017.

Since the Parkland shooting, which left 17 students and faculty dead, Rubio has been the target of heavy criticism from the left for his stance on guns and his relationship with the NRA.