NRA Debuts Hillary Clinton Attack Ad In North Carolina After Donald Trump's Second Amendment Controversy

The National Rifle Association is taking aim at Hillary Clinton in North Carolina.

The political wing of the pro-gun group launched a $3 million attack ad campaign against Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton in four battleground states Wednesday, including North Carolina. The focus of the ads, not surprisingly, is the candidate's positions of gun control and her alleged opposition to gun ownership. The ads come less than a week after the NRA expressed solidarity with Donald Trump after the GOP nominee's controversial comments about Clinton and the Second Amendment.

The ads, which will continue to run on broadcast and cable stations in the chosen states, attack the supposed "hypocrisy" of Clinton's luxury lifestyle and use of armed guards while advocating for restrictions to gun ownership for the average citizen. The new one features a Clinton look-alike, shown only from behind, sporting an identical hairstyle and purple suit jacket. The fake Clinton boards a private jet flanked by armed guards while a voice over narrator critiques the candidate.

"[Clinton is] one of the wealthiest women in politics — combined income: $30 million; tours the world on private jets; protected by armed guards for 30 years. But she doesn't believe in your right to keep a gun at home for self-defense," the ad says.

In her official platform on her campaign website, Clinton calls for "common sense" gun control measures to curb the high rates of gun violence in the United States. These include making it illegal for those on terrorist watch lists to buy guns, expanding background checks and closing the gun show loophole, online sales loophole and the famed "Charleston" loophole. She also advocates for making it hard for domestic abusers and those suffering from mental illnesses to buy guns and has suggested that the U.S. renew a ban on assault rifle-style weapons. Many of those reforms have widespread support in public polling.

The NRA, which has endorsed Trump, vehemently opposes those measure and has suggested that Clinton would go further than she says, implying she would attempt to take away guns from current gun owners or attempt to abolish the Second Amendment. Trump suggested as much at a rally in Wilmington, North Carolina Tuesday in a speech that drew much criticism.

"Hillary wants to abolish, essentially abolish the Second Amendment," Trump said. "By the way, if she gets to pick her judges, nothing you can do folks ... Although the Second Amendment people, maybe there is, I don’t know."

Trump's remarks have been interpreted by critics to mean anything from a veiled threat to Clinton's life to a reckless dog whistle for supporters to violently oppose gun reform. Meanwhile, Trump's campaign surrogates have written the comment off as a bad joke or a poorly phrased appeal to the voting power of gun rights advocates in the upcoming election

The NRA defended Trump's comments in a tweet calling on gun rights supporters to vote for the GOP nominee.