Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney pushed what many considered tasteless support for gun control during a press conference regarding the Temple University officer shooting on Tuesday.
Kenney, along with other city officials, offered additional details surrounding the murder of Temple University Police Officer Christopher Fitzgerald that occurred Saturday night. While Kenney expressed his condolences to Fitzgerald’s family, he took time during the press conference to call out how easy it is to get guns in his city.
"It is simple, too easy to access weapons in our state and in our region. And that turns too many confrontations into fatal encounters, like an argument over a parking space. We are fighting an uphill battle and it doesn’t have to be this way. I will continue to call on state lawmakers for sensible gun reforms that will protect our city’s residents, including the brave men and women who have taken an oath to protect the peace," Kennedy said.
He added, "You can say you back the blue but if you don't back gun control and gun availability, you don't back the blue. We owe it to them to do everything we can to stop this nonsense and stop this tragedy."
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Several Twitter users blasted Kenney for using an officer’s death to push for gun control.
"while wearing a Ukraine pin," author Michael Malice remarked.
"Empty suit mayor who brought back 90s crime rates to his city wearing a Ukraine pin blaming a police officer being killed by a thug on everybody but himself. Basically the perfect image of today's liberal politicians," X Strategies senior digital strategist Greg Price wrote.
Florida State Board of Education member Ryan Petty tweeted, "The sounds of a failed mayor looking to blame cast for rising crime under his watch. We heard similar noises from officials in Broward after Parkland."
"Pushing gun control while sporting a Ukraine pin as a mayor of a crime-ridden city that has lots of gun control. The state of leftism," RedState writer Bonchie commented.
Heritage Legal Fellow Amy Swearer wrote, "Actually, ‘cops shouldn't be murdered in cold blood’ is perfectly consistent with ‘and neither should anyone else, which is why peaceable citizens also have a right to keep and bear arms in their own defense - a right which your gun control would almost certainly infringe.’"
"Jim Kenney telling people how to or who should back the blue is next level arrogance. This guy is completely oblivious to his self created surroundings," radio host Nick Kayal tweeted.
Kenney continued to promote gun control legislation in other parts of the press conference.
"If you look at the state of New Jersey, the state of New York and the city of New York, they border us, don’t have the problems that we have. This is a gun-crazy state," Kenney said.
He also remarked, "When the Second Amendment was written, it was written for a single shot, muzzle-loaded, long gun used to fight the British. It wasn’t written for an AR-15 or an AK-47 or a multiple-shot clip and semi-automatic handgun. And that’s the problem. I don’t think our Founding Fathers even considered what we’re going through today. And so this Second Amendment stuff is just, it’s all about money."
Kenney made similar comments following a Fourth of July shooting in his city.
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"It was a chilled back day, beautiful weather. But we live in America where we have the Second Amendment and we have the Supreme Court of the United States telling everybody they can carry a gun wherever they want," Kenney remarked in July.
