Does the National Rifle Association have a hand in holding back Americans from being more aware and informative about the recent outbreak of Ebola? Well, a long list of mainstream voices, including MSBNC, Los Angeles Times, CNN, and States United, definitely seem to lean towards that sentiment, according to Breitbart.
Giving voice to the issue, CNN aired a "Newsroom" segment on Wednesday where the topic of discussion was how the NRA is playing a large hand in keeping United States citizens ignorant on all matters of the deadly disease.
On Wednesday's show, guest Michael Hiltzik, an LA Times columnist, deemed surgeon general nominee Dr. Vivek Murthy as the focal point through which the NRA was helping spread the Ebola epidemic. Mainly, their opposition to Murthy has exacerbated the Ebola crisis, as Americans supposedly have nowhere else to turn for reliable information on the outbreak.
"In February [2013] the NRA dug up a number of statements [Murthy] had made...expressing the viewpoint that gun control was a public health issue. [The NRA] found that unacceptable, they wrote letters to Senator Harry Reid (D-NV) and Senator Mitch McConnell (D-KY), and they said Dr. Murthy is not acceptable to them, and that basically quashed his nomination," he said.
Describing NRA as the "fourth branch of government," Hiltzik said the organization's opposition has left the Americans with no "point man" to educate the country on Ebola or stop the spread of the disease, according to CNN.
However, a refreshing perspective was voiced by The Hill's A.B. Stoddard, who was also a guest on the segment. Disputing earlier claims, she stated that the U.S. did in fact have someone whose job was to handle Ebola response and preparedness.
But despite the expert's help, things aren't going so well, she said.
"Her name is Dr. Nicole Lurie, she is the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response for Public Health Emergencies, and she is nowhere to be found," Stoddard said.
Additionally, in an article titled, "How the NRA is making the Ebola crisis worse," MSNBC lamented, "thanks to NRA power and Senate cowardice, we are left with no surgeon general during a time when, we not only have Ebola arriving on our shores, but are also dealing with the mysterious Enterovirus, which is infecting and contributing to the deaths of children in the U.S."
Similarly, States United tweeted, "Ebola now in the US. Surgeon General should be leading the way on public health education but NRA stalled nomination. No outrage?"
