Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) is denying he is out of step with President Obama on gun control.
The Democratic presidential candidate said Friday that Obama was not criticizing his position on firearms in a New York Times op-ed the night before.
{mosads}“Do you see this as a warning shot against you because of your opposition to immunity for the [gun] manufacturers?” MSNBC host Andrea Mitchell asked Sanders.
“No, no I don’t. I truly don’t,” he responded.
“There are lot of candidates and money in the House and Senate who may be opposed to sensible gun control legislation,” Sanders continued. “I happen not to be one of them. I strongly support the executive order that the president is working on right now.”
Sanders said he agrees with many aspects of Obama’s executive action on gun control issued earlier this week.
“The bottom line is that we have got to keep guns out of the hands of people who should not have them — criminals [and] people who have mental instability issues,” he said.
“I believe we have got to close the gun show loophole [and] I think we should ban weapons that are designed to kill people very quickly, military-type weapons,” Sanders continued. “I think that my views on these issues are very, very strong and I support what the president is doing.”
Obama vowed late Thursday that he would not back candidates from any party who disagree with his gun control efforts.
“I will not campaign for, vote for or support any candidate, even in my own party, who does not support common-sense gun reform,” he wrote in the op-ed.
Obama also slammed Congress for helping gun manufacturers “enjoy virtual immunity from lawsuits.”
Sanders voted in favor of 2005 legislation that shields gun manufacturers from lawsuits.
Sanders has faced criticism from some liberals who say he is softer on gun control than other his Democratic presidential rivals.