FAIRFAX, Va. – In one of her last events before the Super Tuesday primary, Hillary Clinton accused the gun lobby of wanting terrorists to have Second Amendment rights — and did so in the home of the National Rifle Association.
“Here’s the worst example of the overreach by the gun lobby: There’s something called the no-fly list. You get on it, you have some connection to terrorists or terrorism,” Clinton, the Democratic front-runner, told an audience of about 200 at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, Monday. “So the gun lobby won’t even let the Congress pass a law prohibiting the people on the no-fly list from buying a gun. What is it about being a terrorist that gives you Second Amendment rights that can be exercised potentially by someone who wants to do harm to Americans.”
Democratic presidential candidate former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton greets supporters with Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) during a Get Out the Vote event at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, Monday. Hillary Clinton is campaigning in Massachusetts and Virginia ahead of Super Tuesday. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
“If we can’t figure out how to respect the constitutional rights of gun owners and keep guns out of the hand of people who have felony records or are stalkers, have domestic violence orders against them, are dangerously mentally ill, shame on us," Clinton said.
Standing in front of a big blue sign that said, “Fighting for You,” Clinton made just one reference to her Democratic primary opponent, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders. Sanders tied Clinton in Iowa, trounced her in New Hampshire, but lost to her in Nevada and South Carolina.
Clinton vowed to bring down the cost of student debt and criticized the Sanders plan for making college free because she said that wealthy students should pay.
“I’m not going to tax you and your family so Donald Trump’s children go to school for free,” Clinton said to applause.
Virginia is one of 11 states voting in the Super Tuesday primary
Michael Johnson, a sophomore at GMU, is leaning toward Sanders on Super Tuesday but said he can be persuaded, which is why he came to the rally.
“I’m checking the Democratic candidates out as far who will run against Donald Trump and getting educated about what they have to offer,” Johnson told TheBlaze. “I’m leaning toward Bernie Sanders right now but that could change. Bernie supports better tax management to make college more affordable for future generations.”
Other students attending the rally were more certain.
“I’m focusing on women’s rights and foreign policy,” Sophia Rutti, a junior at GMU, told TheBlaze. “No one else even comes close to Hillary on those issues. She knows more world leaders well and she understands what it’s like to be a woman.”
Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe and Sen. Tim Kaine, both Democrats, shared the stage to endorse Clinton.
Clinton also took shots at Trump, for his controversial comments — particularly about halting Muslim immigration.
“If you go out and vote for me tomorrow, I will stand up and fight for you throughout this campaign no matter who the Republicans nominate,” Clinton said. “In fact, I got to tell you, I’m looking forward to those debates because at some point you can’t just say whatever pops into your head if you want to be the president of the United States of America. People around the world actually listen to what people running for president say.”
Clinton said she knows how to build a coalition with Arab countries to fight the Islamic State.
“When you’ve got somebody running for president who is insulting their religion, that makes a hard job even harder,” Clinton said.
Vanessa Cardenas, a senior at GMU, said she supports Sanders on many issues but believes Clinton is more realistic.
“In an idea world, the social justice platform he is advocating is the right thing to do, but America can’t afford it yet,” Cardenas told TheBlaze. “Hillary will pave the way for that.”
