Explore The NRA Universe Of Websites

APPEARS IN News

Say What? Gun Control Advocates Try to Change the Language of Crime

Friday, April 29, 2016

Say What? Gun Control Advocates Try to Change the Language of Crime

As a cabinet level official in the Obama administration, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton both reflected and informed the regime’s values and tactics, some of which she has carried forward into her own campaign for the White House. This includes careful and selective use of language to fulfill the Obama imperative to “punish our enemies” and “reward our friends who stand with us on issues that are important to us”. And just as Obama pledged to fundamentally transform the United States of America, he and Clinton are fundamentally transforming the English language to reorient the public on “issues that are important” to their shared agenda of gun control.

For fans of history or literature, this will come as no surprise. The totalitarian regime in George Orwell’s novel 1984 provides the roadmap that Obama and Clinton are now following. “Whatever the Party holds to be truth is truth,” an apparatchik tells a political prisoner. “It is impossible to see reality except by looking through the eyes of the Party.” 

Hillary Clinton has been very specific about labeling the NRA (and by extension, the millions upon millions of law-abiding Americans it represents) as her “enemy.” She has also likened NRA to “the Iranians or the Communists” and insisted that pro-gun advocates “hold a viewpoint that terrorizes the majority of people.”

But the NRA represents law-abiding gun owners. What about the criminals who intentionally hurt people with firearms?

Acknowledgement that crime is a product of human choice and behavior is becomingly increasingly unfashionable for many in Hillary Clinton’s party. Clinton-speak even allows for the concept of criminal-free violent crime.  During a Democratic primary debate in Brooklyn on April 14, for example, Clinton asserted, “Well, the facts are that most of the guns that end up committing crimes in New York come from out of state.” 

Guns don’t commit crime, Madame Secretary.  Criminals do.  

Just this week, though, the Obama administration doubled down on Clinton’s logic by insinuating that even the terms “delinquent,” “criminal,” or “convict” are now passé. On April 25, the Obama Justice Department announced a $1.75 million initiative to “Help Justice-Involved Youth Find Jobs and Housing.” Someone merely reading the headline could be forgiven for thinking that meant the administration was trying to recruit young people into careers in law enforcement … or maybe even the type of “community organizing” for “social justice” that launched Obama’s own public persona. The press release, however, makes clear that the justice-involved youth are actually people who have broken the law early in life and are reintegrating into society after serving a term in “juvenile justice facilities” or in a state or federal prison. 

This follows a similar rebranding of lawbreakers by the gun control group Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence (which, if its name reflected its true make-up and mission, would be called San Francisco Lawyers Trying to Prevent Gun Ownership). As we reported in March, that group similarly insists that preventing urban gun violence necessitates replacing characterizations like “gang members, thugs, or predators” with the more mild sounding terms “clients, individuals, and fellow community members.”

There’s nothing wrong with trying to prevent violence or give offenders who wish to turn around their lives the opportunity to do so.

But any honest discussion of gun-related crime must include the notion of criminals committing volitional acts. Smearing NRA and portraying guns as acting independently, while ignoring or diminishing the culpability of people who actually pull the trigger, isn’t a way to advance the debate. It’s a way to avoid it. 

Obama and Clinton invest heavily in semantics because they’re short on facts to support their positions. That’s how NRA members become associated with terrorists and convicted lawbreakers become associated with justice. But whatever sort of linguistic gymnastics they might use to bamboozle the public, the American voter still gets the last word in November.

IN THIS ARTICLE
Hillary Clinton Barack Obama
TRENDING NOW
Baltimore Gets Serious on Crime Control, and the Results Speak for Themselves

News  

Monday, July 14, 2025

Baltimore Gets Serious on Crime Control, and the Results Speak for Themselves

As the mid-year mark of 2025 hits, a promising report on crime trends has come out of the City of Baltimore. Surprising news at first glance until you dig deeper into the policy direction the ...

U.K. Moves to Legally De-suppress Suppressors

News  

Monday, July 14, 2025

U.K. Moves to Legally De-suppress Suppressors

On July 4th, President Donald Trump signed into law his “One Big Beautiful Bill,” which included a provision that eliminated the tax stamp fee of $200, but did not deregulate suppressors under the National Firearms ...

President Trump Supports Hunting and Resource Protection with Executive Actions

News  

Monday, July 14, 2025

President Trump Supports Hunting and Resource Protection with Executive Actions

Just as the United States was preparing to celebrate 249 beautiful years, President Donald Trump signed an Executive Order on July 3rd establishing the “Make America Beautiful Again" Commission supporting hunters, outdoorsmen, and outdoor recreationists by prioritizing the ...

Legacy Media Finally Acknowledges Politization of Public Health

News  

Monday, July 14, 2025

Legacy Media Finally Acknowledges Politization of Public Health

It appears the editors of The Atlantic are finally willing to entertain an idea that has long been obvious to gun rights supporters.

House Annual Appropriations Process Update

News  

Monday, July 14, 2025

House Annual Appropriations Process Update

As the House Appropriations Committee is putting together legislation to fund the government, NRA-ILA has worked closely with policy makers to ensure several long-standing priorities for gun owners were included in the underlying bills.

U.S. House Passes Reconciliation Bill, Removing Suppressors from the National Firearms Act

News  

Second Amendment  

Thursday, May 22, 2025

U.S. House Passes Reconciliation Bill, Removing Suppressors from the National Firearms Act

Earlier today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R.1 the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which included Section 2 of the Hearing Protection Act, completely removing suppressors from the National Firearms Act (NFA).

DOJ Declines to Seek Supreme Court Review of Decision Striking Down Federal Laws Prohibiting FFLs From Selling Handguns to 18-to-20-Year-Olds

Thursday, July 10, 2025

DOJ Declines to Seek Supreme Court Review of Decision Striking Down Federal Laws Prohibiting FFLs From Selling Handguns to 18-to-20-Year-Olds

In Reese v. ATF, the Fifth Circuit held that 18 U.S.C. §§ 922(b)(1) and (c)(1)—which together forbid Federal Firearms Licensees from selling handguns to 18-to-20-year-olds—violate the Second Amendment.

NRA-ILA July 2025 Litigation Update

Thursday, July 10, 2025

NRA-ILA July 2025 Litigation Update

In the second quarter of 2025, the National Rifle Association filed two cert petitions in the U.S. Supreme Court and five amicus briefs, while continuing to litigate dozens of ongoing lawsuits across the country.

Florida: Second Amendment Sales Tax Holiday Signed by Governor

Monday, July 7, 2025

Florida: Second Amendment Sales Tax Holiday Signed by Governor

Governor Ron DeSantis recently signed the Florida Budget for Fiscal Year 2025–2026, which includes a Second Amendment sales tax holiday from September 8 through December 31, 2025. The NRA is thankful for Governor DeSantis’ strong ...

Maine: Lawmakers Call for Anti-2A Progressive Professor to Be Fired

Tuesday, July 8, 2025

Maine: Lawmakers Call for Anti-2A Progressive Professor to Be Fired

In case you missed the media firestorm last week, a progressive professor at Eastern Maine Community College in Bangor, Maine, has come under fire for her emails belittling a student for her religious beliefs and views ...

MORE TRENDING +
LESS TRENDING -

More Like This From Around The NRA

NRA ILA

Established in 1975, the Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) is the "lobbying" arm of the National Rifle Association of America. ILA is responsible for preserving the right of all law-abiding individuals in the legislative, political, and legal arenas, to purchase, possess and use firearms for legitimate purposes as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.