Via Business Insider, a reminder from the left that if you’re associated with the NRA, you might as well have had your finger on the trigger of Adam Lanza’s gun. I like this ad, partly because it superbly reflects how dumb, nasty, and dishonest the national “debate” over gun control is and partly because it’s so counterproductive for Democrats. Why counterproductive, apart from the fact that it more or less equates passionate support for gun rights with mass murder? (Fun footnote: Even now, the NRA polls better nationally than the entertainment industry does.) Because the congressman targeted here is a Democrat. And not just any Democrat but a Democrat who comes from a district in Georgia that’s much more conservative now, after redistricting, than it was in 2010. The plan here seems to be to ignite a primary challenge from the left, which would, if successful, paradoxically make things much easier for the GOP in the general election. Or maybe there is no plan; maybe this is pure punishment for Barrow daring to accept an endorsement from the root of all evil, even though he said yesterday that he supports stricter enforcement of existing gun laws and more security in schools. If he loses in the primary and the seat turns red, that just serves him right for being such a devout fan of child murder. Keep up the good work, gun-control fans.

And like I said, not just dumb and nasty, but dishonest:

Here’s the problem: The CSGV has done some selective editing in its video. In its version of the ad, Barrow displays a pistol and says:

“Long before I was born, my grandfather used this little Smith & Wesson here….”

It cuts the Augusta congressman off there. How did Barrow finish the sentence in the original, and what did the CSGV choose to omit? This:

”…to help stop a lynching.”

Yeah, turns out sometimes guns can be used for good. Note to gun-rights supporters: If you were holding anything back in your messaging, this ad is your green light from the left to get as vicious and emotionally manipulative as you can. Democrats and, er, Chris Christie are squealing over that NRA ad about school security for Obama’s kids, but that’s small potatoes. There are a good half-dozen ads, I’d imagine, that can be mined from interviews with this woman and people like her about gun-grabbers leaving women more vulnerable to rape. Progressives have done America a service by letting voters know that John Barrow is pro-murder; it’s only right to build on that public awareness by letting them know that most Democrats are pro-rape. If this “debate” is going to involve smears like this, then let the smears fly.

Exit quotation: “Part of the gun lobby’s momentum is due to the NRA, which remains broadly popular despite the media’s mockery of the organization’s response to the Newtown shooting. Forty-eight percent of respondents said they agreed with the NRA’s position on guns, compared to 42% who disagreed.”