Texas assassination: Murder weapon maker skips annual NRA gun lobby meeting

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Promotional poster for Donald Trump's appearance at the NRA meeting

PHOTO: SHANNON STAPLETON / REUTERS

An appointment can hardly be more cynical.

Just three days after the Uvalde tragedy in which 21 victims were shot dead, the US gun lobby organization National Rifle Association (NRA) is holding its annual meeting.

The firearms promotional show is on in Houston, as is the small town of Uvalde, Texas.

Not included is the manufacturer of the assault rifle used in the school massacre.

"Daniel Defense is not attending the NRA meeting due to the terrible tragedy in Uvalde, where one of our products was criminally misused," the company told AFP on Thursday.

"We believe this week is not the right time to promote our products at the NRA convention in Texas," the company added.

The event will take place from May 27th to 29th in the Texan city of Houston.

Numerous conservative Republican politicians will appear, including former President Donald Trump.

The NRA has been instrumental in preventing the passage of stricter firearms regulations in the United States time and time again.

The manufacturer Daniel Defense had previously pledged its full support in the investigation into Tuesday's massacre.

NRA and Republicans are closely related

A week before the attack, the company tweeted an image showing a young boy sitting on the ground with an assault rifle while an adult pointed his finger at the gun.

“Raise a child to walk the path it is meant to walk, and when it grows up it will not deviate from it,” reads the caption accompanying the picture.

The Texas incident has reignited a debate about gun rights in the United States.

Plans to tighten the laws repeatedly fail due to opposition from Republicans.

Quite a few of them are - also financially - under the influence of the gun lobby NRA.

jok/AFP