Washington:
The White House on Wednesday slammed a gun lobby advertisement accusing President Barack Obama of hypocrisy over Secret Service protection offered to his daughters as "repugnant and cowardly."
"Most Americans agree that a president's children should not be used as pawns in a political fight," said White House spokesman Jay Carney.
"But to go so far as to make the safety of the president's children the subject of an attack ad is repugnant and cowardly," White House spokesman Jay Carney said.
In a 35-second video released on its website, the National Rifle Association blasted Mr Obama as an "elitist hypocrite" for agreeing to Secret Service protection to his daughters but balking at having armed guards in all schools.
The NRA slammed the duplicity of "protection for their kids, and gun-free zones for ours," amid a heated, nationwide gun control debate in the wake of a deadly school shooting and as Mr Obama unveils new gun control measures.
"Are the president's kids more important than yours?" the NRA's narrator asked in a deep voice.
In a December interview, Mr Obama said he was "skeptical" that an NRA proposal of placing armed security guards at schools around the country was the sole answer to curbing mass shootings.
The Obamas are fiercely protective of their daughters, Malia, 14, and Sasha, 11, and take pains to protect their chances of having a normal childhood, despite growing up in the fishbowl of the White House.
Most Americans - 55 percent - back the NRA's proposal for armed guards in schools, according to an ABC News/Washington Post poll out this week.
But 52 percent of respondents also said the shooting in Newtown, Connecticut on December 14 had made them more supportive of gun control.
A young man gunned down 20 children aged just six and seven, along with six teachers at Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14.
Adam Lanza, who had earlier shot and killed his mother, also took his own life in one of the worst mass shootings in US history.
"Most Americans agree that a president's children should not be used as pawns in a political fight," said White House spokesman Jay Carney.
"But to go so far as to make the safety of the president's children the subject of an attack ad is repugnant and cowardly," White House spokesman Jay Carney said.
In a 35-second video released on its website, the National Rifle Association blasted Mr Obama as an "elitist hypocrite" for agreeing to Secret Service protection to his daughters but balking at having armed guards in all schools.
The NRA slammed the duplicity of "protection for their kids, and gun-free zones for ours," amid a heated, nationwide gun control debate in the wake of a deadly school shooting and as Mr Obama unveils new gun control measures.
"Are the president's kids more important than yours?" the NRA's narrator asked in a deep voice.
In a December interview, Mr Obama said he was "skeptical" that an NRA proposal of placing armed security guards at schools around the country was the sole answer to curbing mass shootings.
The Obamas are fiercely protective of their daughters, Malia, 14, and Sasha, 11, and take pains to protect their chances of having a normal childhood, despite growing up in the fishbowl of the White House.
Most Americans - 55 percent - back the NRA's proposal for armed guards in schools, according to an ABC News/Washington Post poll out this week.
But 52 percent of respondents also said the shooting in Newtown, Connecticut on December 14 had made them more supportive of gun control.
A young man gunned down 20 children aged just six and seven, along with six teachers at Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14.
Adam Lanza, who had earlier shot and killed his mother, also took his own life in one of the worst mass shootings in US history.
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