ODonnells Gun Crusade Off Track
By DAVID BAUDER, AP
NEW YORK (AP) - Rosie O'Donnell's intent was to be a
strong advocate for gun control. But is she shooting herself in the foot? Talk
television's ``Queen of Nice'' has argued on the air about guns with actor Tom Selleck,
become a target for Howard Stern and was accused - in a report heatedly denied - of trying
to alter a Broadway show lyric because it conflicted with her views. Her advocacy
has at least given the National Rifle Association and gun control advocates something new
to argue about. O'Donnell reportedly asked the cast of Broadway's ``Annie Get Your
Gun'' to change a song lyric in ``Anything You Can Do'' before taping her show, the New
York Post said on Monday. She supposedly wanted the line ``I can shoot a partridge with a
single cartridge'' removed. The show's stars refused the request, the Post said. But
O'Donnell's spokeswoman, Laura Mandel, and a representative of the musical both denied the
talk show host asked for the line to be removed.
After initially considering singing ``Anything You Can Do'' on O'Donnell's show,
producers of the Broadway revival decided to perform the song ``My Defenses Are Down,''
which doesn't mention guns.
The producers wanted a song that featured more of the cast, spokesman Pete
Sanders said. If O'Donnell was so sensitive about guns, she wouldn't have booked a
Broadway show with guns in the title, he said.
Tempers had only begun to cool since the O'Donnell-Selleck donnybrook last week.
Since the Columbine High School massacre, O'Donnell has called for legislation that would
make it harder for minors to get guns. Selleck was asked to talk about the issue because
he participated in an NRA ad.
It wasn't a congenial chat. ``She's entitled to her views,'' said NRA
spokesman Bill Powers. ``She certainly didn't treat Mr. Selleck with the same sort
of respect or courtesy that my mother taught me.'' O'Donnell apologized to Selleck,
saying it wasn't her intent to embarrass him. But she said she assumed Selleck would be
better prepared to debate the issue.
``I think she came off better. I think he behaved abominably,'' said Naomi
Paiss, spokeswoman for the lobbying group Handgun Control.
O'Donnell soon found herself with another potential debate partner. Stern
publicly questioned whether O'Donnell was being hypocritical by fighting for gun control
and being a commercial spokeswoman for Kmart, which sells guns.
She wasn't ready to take on Stern. But on her show Friday, O'Donnell said Kmart
was a responsible seller of hunting rifles, which are legal to own. She said she's
interested in gun control efforts for children.
Paiss said her office was flooded with more than 1,000 calls, mostly from people
who wanted to help, after the number was flashed on the screen during O'Donnell's show.
``She's spoken to an audience that wouldn't be caught dead watching `The
McLaughlin Group,''' Paiss said. ``She's been very brave.''
Countered the NRA's Powers: ``I don't think anybody who treats people with that
much of a lack of respect has much of a platform. When you're shrill and rude, your
platform diminishes.''
