MTG starts holiday weekend with attack on Biden claim about guns
Cami Mondeaux
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Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) hit out against President Joe Biden early Saturday morning, accusing the president of lying about gun violence statistics that he says are the leading cause of death among children.
“Liar,” the Georgia Republican simply stated on Twitter.
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The response comes after Biden posted a tweet on Friday evening that called for a national ban on assault weapons and AR-15-style firearms, claiming gun violence is the No. 1 killer of children nationwide.
“More than car accidents and more than cancer,” he wrote. “We can’t let that become just another statistic.”
The statistic shared by Biden is only partially correct and likely relies on data from 2020 and 2021 — which is the latest available data by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The claim that guns are the leading cause of death for children is accurate if it excludes infants under 1 year old and extends the age range to include 18- and 19-year-olds, according to a fact check by Snopes.
If those two parameters are eliminated, the statistics tell a different story.
That’s because infants have a different set of age-specific causes of death that are unique to the age group, such as birth defects, preterm birth, sudden infant death syndrome, pregnancy complications, and others, according to the CDC. Additionally, teenagers aged 18 and 19 have their own unique set of causes of death that could alter the result, including vehicle-related injuries.
Greene is known as one of Capitol Hill’s staunchest gun rights supporters, and the Georgia Republican has repeatedly called for access to firearms rather than increased gun restrictions. After a mass shooting at a Nashville elementary school earlier this year that left six dead, Greene used the incident to promote strengthening security inside school buildings.
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“Children and school staff should always be protected the same way politicians, money, precious stones, and gold are protected, but even more so, by good guys with guns,” she wrote in a March 27 tweet. “School shootings should NEVER happen and will end immediately when our nations children are defended the same way Joe Biden is by good guys with guns!!!”
The White House has not yet responded to a request for comment by the Washington Examiner.