Ted Cruz claims that President Obama's pick for Surgeon General is not a "health care professional" because he is for stricter gun laws.

Courtesy of Raw Story:  

Sen.Ted Cruz (R-TX) on Sunday accused President Barack Obama’s pick for surgeon general of not being a “health care professional” because the doctor had backed a ban on military-style assault rifles. 

During an interview on CNN, host Candy Crowley pointed out that the surgeon general should “voice” of public health during the Ebola crisis, but Republicans in the Senate had blocked the appointment of Dr. Vivek Murthy. 

“Of course we should have a surgeon general in place,” Cruz told Crowley. “And we don’t have one because President Obama, instead of nominating a health professional, he nominated someone who is an anti-gun activist.” 

“And a doctor,” Crowley pointed out. “That’s a health professional.” 

“He’s a doctor,” Cruz admitted. “Where he’s made his name is as a crusader against Second Amendment rights, and as a consequence, he didn’t have the votes among Republicans or Democrats.”

Yes that's right, because you recognize that one of the  biggest hazards facing the American people is the proliferation of firearms you cannot possibly be a health care professional. Even if you are a licensed physician.

And that is why the NRA is blocking this guy's confirmation.

This article from The Nation might help to explain it: 

The post of the surgeon general has been vacant since July, and it looks likely to remain that way for some time thanks to a strident campaign led by the National Rifle Association and libertarian Senator Rand Paul against President Obama’s nominee, Dr. Vivek Murthy. 

Murthy has medical and business degrees from Yale, works as an attending physician and instructor at Brigham and Women’s Hospital at Harvard Medical School and has founded several health businesses and nonprofits. He has also expressed support for limited gun safety measures like a ban on assault weapons, mandatory safety training and limits on ammunition, and so the NRA has declared it will “score” his confirmation vote, putting pressure on Senate Democrats running tight re-election races in red states to block Murthy’s confirmation. As The New York Times reported on Saturday, the White House is “recalibrating” its strategy towards Murthy’s nomination, meaning the Senate vote will either be delayed or never happen.

And that is why today, in the middle of media driven hysteria concerning Ebola, we do not have a trusted voice to put the minds of the American people at ease.

Thanks NRA.