First it was the “birther” movement, but now President Obama is left to squash skeet-shooting skepticism?
The controversy all started in the context of the gun control debate after Obama, in an interview with The New Republic, went out to prove his weapon-wielding bona fides and admitted he had, in fact, fired a gun before.
“Yes, in fact, up at Camp David, we do skeet shooting all the time,” he said in the interview published last week, adding that gun-toting was never a family affair, but a hobby shared “oftentimes” with guests.
So begins the birther-esque fact-checking crusade. If there were no pictures of Obama skeet shooting, and if no one could on record place him on the Camp David range, then can it be proven that Obama has, in fact, used a gun?
When pressed by reporters for photographic evidence to prove Obama’s shooting claims, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said the president’s visits to Camp David were “to spend time with his family and friends and relax, not to produce photographs.”
But on Saturday, the White House produced a photograph of Obama from last August, wielding a rifle to shoot clay targets.
President Barack Obama shoots clay targets on the range at Camp David, Md., Saturday, Aug. 4, 2012. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)
Former top Obama adviser David Plouffe, who just this week joined Twitter after departing from his position in the White House, poked fun at the “skeet birthers.”
Attn skeet birthers. Make our day – let the photoshop conspiracies begin! m.flickr.com/photos/whiteho…
— David Plouffe (@davidplouffe) February 2, 2013
