Why Is Breitbart Retweeting Calls For Gun Control?

In a flurry of strange Twitter activity Monday, conservative website Breitbart News retweeted multiple calls for gun control in the wake of the deadliest mass shooting in modern history. The Twitter account retweeted multiple advocates for stricter gun legislation throughout the morning after at least 50 people were killed and more than 400 were injured in a mass shooting in Las Vegas the day before.

“We have spent trillions of dollars fighting wars to prevent acts of terrorism,” one post retweeted by Breitbart said. “We could save far more lives with rational gun restrictions.”

“If you allow people to buy automatic weapons – if you campaign on it – you do not “stand united” with the victims and their families,” another post retweeted by Breitbart read.

The news outlet also retweeted a post by Hillary Clinton.

“The crowd fled at the sound of gunshots,” Clinton tweeted. “Imagine the deaths if the shooter had a silencer, which the NRA wants to make easier to get.”

Breitbart is famously protective of gun rights. The website’s archive shows a multitude of articles advocating for gun rights including “Gun-Controlled Chicago: Five Shot In Four Hours,” and “The Five Most Outrageous Facts About Obama’s Executive Gun Control.”

Some suggested Breitbart might be trying to get right-wing Twitter to harass those calling for gun control, a theory supported by a previous tweet by Breitbart earlier in the day. The website posted one of its own articles entitled “Celebrities Rush to Call for Gun Control After Vegas Mass Shooting,” with the caption “Natch.”