Mayor Michael Bloomberg on Sunday drew a backlash over a remark he made on his radio show.

The mayor lumped the United Federation of Teachers � the teachers� union in New York City � with the National Rifle Association as he listed groups controlled by a vocal minority.

�There�s a small group in the union. That�s typical of an organization like that,� Bloomberg said. �It�s typical of Congress, it�s typical of unions, it�s typical of companies, I guess, where a small group really is carrying the ball and the others aren�t necessarily in agreement,� Bloomberg said. �The NRA�s another place where the membership if you do the polling the membership doesn�t agree with the leadership.�

In response, more than 60 local leaders signed a letter released Sunday, which said, �Such an offensive comparison not only vilifies New York City teachers, but also mocks the work they do.�

The letter goes on to say the remarks �show astonishingly poor judgment, and are unworthy of you, your position and your record.�

The signatures on the letter included Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer, Public Advocate Bill de Blasio, and Comptroller John Liu.

The United Federation of Teachers also issued a statement castigating Bloomberg.

�In the wake of the Newtown (Conn.) tragedy, the mayor�s comparison this morning of teachers to the National Rifle Association is completely inappropriate, and a demonstration of how difficult he can be to deal with on any issue � much less one as complex as a new teacher evaluation system,� union president Michael Mulgrew said in the statement.

The union noted that Bloomberg�s statement came shortly after a TV ad by the union urging Bloomberg to come to an agreement on teacher evaluations. The ad accused Bloomberg of �going after� teachers instead of supporting them.

(Source: WCBSTV)