Samuel Wurzelbacher, better known as Joe the Plumber, recently declared that while he is saddened by the victims of Friday's shooting rampage, their deaths do not trump the constitutional right to bear arms.
Wurzelbacher, who is seen by many Americans as the voice of the middle class, wrote a letter to the families of victims Elliot Rodger's shooting massacre this past weekend in Santa Barbara, CA.
"I am sorry you lost your child. I myself have a son and daughter and the one thing I never want to go through, is what you are going through now. But: As harsh as this sounds -- your dead kids don't trump my Constitutional rights," Wurzelbacher wrote.
Wurzelbacher's letter was published on Barbwire Monday, days after one shooting victim's father blamed "craven, irresponsible politicians" and the National Rifle Association for his son's death.
Wurzelbacher said the words of Richard Martinez, whose son Christopher Martinez was a victim in Friday's incident, "will be exploited by gun-grab extremists as are all tragedies involving gun violence and the mentally ill by the anti-Second Amendment Left."
"Mr. Martinez and anyone calling for more restrictions on American's rights need to back off and stop playing into the hands of the folks who merely capitalize on these horrific events for their own political ends," Wurzelbacher wrote.
"We still have the Right to Bear Arms and I intend to continue to speak out for that right, and against those who would restrict it - even in the face of this horrible incident by this sad and insane individual," he continued.
While Wurzelbacher expressed sympathy for the families of those killed by mentally disturbed student Elliot Rodger, he added, "any feelings you have toward my rights being taken away from me, lose those."
The former congressional candidate clarified that his letter was directed "only to the families of the gunshot victims in Santa Barbara" and not to the families of three who were stabbed ahead of the shooting spree.
Wurzelbacher wrote that while his comments are "harsh," he noted that pro-gun control activists "don't care about your family or your dead children at all."
"They sound like they do, whereas I sound uncaring and like I say, harsh," Wurzelbacher wrote. "Don't be fooled - I care about your family and mine. The future of our very liberty lies in the balance of this fight."
