Former Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum has gone and done it now.

Now a CNN contributor, Santorum drew the ire of Stoneman Douglas media sensation David Hogg on Sunday when he suggested high school students would be better served learning CPR than trying to pass laws restricting the rights of others.

“How about kids instead of looking to someone else to solve their problem, do something about maybe taking CPR classes or trying to deal with situations that when there is a violent shooter that you can actually respond to that,” the former senator said during an appearance on CNN’s “State of the Union.”

The bid for self-reliance was followed by criticism of the March for our Lives rally, where liberal organizers thrust the student survivors of last months shooting who share their political views to center stage.

“They took action to ask someone to pass a law,” Santorum said. “They didn’t take action to say, ‘How do I, as an individual, deal with this problem? How am I going to do something about stopping bullying within my own community? What am I going to do to actually help respond to a shooter?’… Those are the kind of things where you can take it internally, and say, ‘Here’s how I’m going to deal with this. Here’s how I’m going to help the situation,’ instead of going and protesting and saying, ‘Oh, someone else needs to pass a law to protect me.'”

Fellow panelist Van Jones, the one time self-proclaimed communist, interjected to say he was proud of these students.

“I’m proud of them,” Santorum replied. “But I think everyone should be responsible and deal with the problems that we have to confront in our lives. And ignoring those problems and saying they’re not going to come to me and saying some phony gun law is gonna solve it. Phony gun laws don’t solve these problems.”

Hogg, who’s not hesitant to share his opinion, was quick to react to the suggestion that he learn CPR, using the remark to attack the NRA.

“I think @RickSantorum might need to learn CPR for the NRA following midterms,” the high school student tweeted.

I think @RickSantorum might need to learn CPR for the NRA following midterms

— David Hogg (@davidhogg111) March 25, 2018

Ironically, the tweet attacking the NRA was striking similar to a response from Erica Lafferty, the program manager for the Michael Bloomberg-backed gun control group Everytown for Gun Safety.

“For anyone to suggest that the solution to gun violence is for kids to learn CPR is outrageous, and indicative of the NRA’s desire to do or say anything except strengthen America’s weak gun laws,” Lafferty said in a statement.

In the end, Santorum pointed out that the protests are a political effort supported by “the Hollywood elites and the liberal billionaires,” and said more attention needs to be paid toward “keeping our schools safe.”

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Tom Tillison

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The longest-tenured writer at BizPac Review, Tom grew up in Maryland before moving to Central Florida as a young teen. It is in the Sunshine State that he honed both his passion for politics and his writing skills.

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