Rand Paul calls NRA snub 'petty'

U.S. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY), a 2016 Republican White House hopeful, gestures with his cell phone as he speaks at a campaign event in Milford, New Hampshire April 8, 2015. REUTERS/Joel Page

Republican presidential candidate Rand Paul told Bloomberg News he believed it was “petty” that the National Rifle Association did not invite him to address attendees at their annual conference in Nashville this weekend.

Other potential Republican White House contenders will speak at the NRA gathering on Thursday, but both the Kentucky Senator and New Jersey Governor Chris Christie were given the snub by the gun rights organization.

“The interesting thing is that there’s probably no greater advocate for the Second Amendment in Congress than myself,” Paul told Bloomberg. “To not be invited, probably, will serve more to cast aspersions on their group than it would on me. Because my record’s pretty clear. It probably looks a little bit petty for them not to invite a major candidate because I raised money for other Second Amendment groups.”

Paul claims that the NRA is punishing him for working with other firearm organizations like the National Association for Gun Rights and Gun Owners of America.