You talkin' to me?

President Obama recently invited to NRA to the White House for a closed-door meeting about gun control. Usually, when the president asks to see you, you go. The NRA flatly refused. Why? Mother Jones writer Kevin Drum thinks the problem may stem from Obama's appearances at a Republican retreat and healthcare summit last year. At both events, Obama went all "Powell Doctrine" on the Republicans: He dominated overwhelmingly and racked up big public opinion wins. Drum writes, "[Obama has] mastered the art of controlling the conversation and sounding like a voice of reason in settings like this, and conservatives — especially tea party conservatives — don't trust themselves any longer to come out ahead when they're negotiating with him. They now consider even closed-door meetings at the White House to be traps, and they are, to put it bluntly, afraid of Obama." Heh. Drum might be on to something here.