Clinton hits Sanders on gun control, sharpens attacks

PHILADELPHIA — Armed with a blistering tabloid cover, Hillary Clinton is pitting Bernie Sanders against the parents of children slain in Sandy Hook, part of an effort to punch her way into the critical New York primary.

The inflammatory rhetoric underscores the importance of the New York contest on April 19 to her campaign and the mounting frustration of Clinton and her husband, former President Bill Clinton, with the lingering primary battle.

That irritation spilled out in the public arena on Wednesday, when Clinton released a flurry of attacks on Sanders, questioning his truthfulness, preparedness for the presidency and loyalty to Democratic Party principles.

During an appearance on MSNBC Wednesday morning, Clinton pointed to the cover of the New York Daily News criticizing Sanders for saying he did not think victims of a gun crime should be able to sue the manufacturer. His comments came when the newspaper’s editorial board asked him about a wrongful death lawsuit against a rifle maker over the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre in Newtown, Conn.

“That he would place gun manufacturers’ rights and immunity from liability against the parents of the children killed at Sandy Hook is just unimaginable to me,” said Clinton, who has long sought to highlight the candidates’ differences on guns.

For his part, Sanders told the editorial board that he did not think gun crime victims should be able to sue gun manufacturers. But he did say people should be able to sue dealers and manufacturers who sell when they know “guns are going to the hands of wrong people.” He also said he supported a ban on assault weapons.

Clinton’s campaign — which seized on a number of statements in the interview — organized a phone call for reporters with elected officials and gun control advocates, including Jillian Soto, whose sister was a teacher killed at Sandy Hook, called Sanders’ comments “offensive.”

“He doesn’t know the pain my family has been going through since Dec. 14, 2012,” she said.

Clinton also jumped on the limited details Sanders offered in the editorial board meeting about how he would break up the country’s big financial institutions, saying he “hadn’t done his homework.” And in an interview with Politico, Clinton said she tries to explain things in a more “open and truthful way than my opponent.”

Later, at a Philadelphia job training center, Clinton said people should know what she would do if she’s elected president, “not just lots of arm-waving and hot rhetoric.”

Despite a sizable delegate lead, the stakes are high for Clinton in New York, the state she represented for eight years in the Senate. A loss there would be a major political blow that would highlight her weaknesses within her own party.