This week, the Florida Democratic Party condemned a campaign stop made by former President Donald Trump to Palmetto State Armory, where the neo-Nazi who shot three Black people in Jacksonville last month purchased his weapon.
“This visit was no accident,” said Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried. “Donald Trump’s visit to this gun shop sends a clear message to his extremist supporters: he supports the horrific racism that drove a man to murder Black Floridians in broad daylight. It’s a sickening decision from the de facto leader of the GOP and the presumptive choice for their presidential nomination.”
Gun violence and the larger issue of gun control will likely continue to be a hot political issue and be part of the 2024 national elections.
“The Republican Party continues to make a mockery of gun violence,” FDP Chair Fried continued. “Instead of taking steps to save lives — like the Biden-Harris administration did by launching the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention last week — GOP leadership spends their time posturing for the most extreme elements of their party. The use of racist dog whistles and coded neo-Nazi sympathies are a danger to our society, and any elected Republican with a backbone should be condemning their creeping influence on the party.”
The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office shared pictures of the weapons seized after the shooting and at least one gun came from the shop Trump visited.
Orlando Congressman Maxwell Frost celebrated a political victory in efforts to advance “common sense gun policy” as President Joe Biden created an official office to coordinate gun violence prevention efforts across federal agencies that he pushed.
