Giffords Endorses Amy McGrath in her Bid to Take On Mitch McConnell
Amy McGrath will work for commonsense gun safety in the Senate
April 16, 2020 — Giffords , the gun violence prevention organization founded by former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, endorsed Lt. Colonel Amy McGrath for Senate in Kentucky in a race to unseat Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. McGrath’s election is an opportunity to oust a longtime NRA ally solely responsible for preventing the passage of gun safety legislation in the Senate, such as background checks. In 2018, Giffords was central to the effort to bring a majority committed to action on gun safety to the House of Representatives. These endorsements are part of a push to make the same change in the Senate in 2020.
Statement from former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, co-founder of Giffords
“The Senate won’t change its priorities until we change its leadership. Americans are fed up with politicians in Washington who respond to the tragedy of gun violence by taking dollars and directions from the gun lobby. We need leaders who have the courage to put the safety of our kids and communities ahead of the NRA’s political agenda. This year, if we come together, we have the power to elect champions who will bring gun safety to the United States Senate.
“Lt. Colonel Amy McGrath knows what it means to be a gun safety champion. She understands that owning a gun comes with responsibilities and we can protect that right while keeping firearms out of the wrong hands. While their opponent Mitch McConnell has walked the gun lobby line, McGrath will stand up for our safety. The time for inaction is over. The time to raise our voices is now. It’s time to elect leaders like Amy McGrath to fight for an America where gun violence no longer plagues families and communities.”
Lt. Colonel Amy McGrath has been a lifelong advocate for Kentuckians. At 13 years old, she wrote to ask her elected officials to allow women to serve in combat roles in the military, but never heard back from her senator, Mitch McConnell. After the law was finally changed, McGrath was commissioned as a Marine Corps officer, serving three combat tours over 20 years in the Marines and earning several awards along the way. After her operational flying tours, McGrath built an impressive career in the public sector, working on the US House of Representatives Armed Services Committee, in the Pentagon, and in the US Naval Academy before retiring at the rank of lieutenant colonel and moving back home to Kentucky to raise her family.
Now McGrath is on a mission to serve the people of Kentucky by replacing the senator that wouldn’t write her back all those years ago: Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. As a veteran and gun owner, Amy understands the responsibilities of safe gun ownership. Her opponent, on the other hand, has been the key figure delaying Senate action on crucial legislation such as universal background checks. Mitch McConnell has done the bidding of NRA leadership by blocking Senate action on gun safety legislation that would make Kentuckians—and all Americans—safer. In the Senate, McGrath will be a fearless advocate for the American people, as she has always has been, and will fight to finally end the inaction that has put American lives at risk for far too long.
Amy McGrath approaches gun safety legislation with the seriousness and urgency needed to solve our country’s gun violence epidemic. In contrast, Mitch McConnell has stalled and obstructed any and all gun safety bills sent to him by the House. That’s why Giffords invested nearly $750,000 in ads calling out Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) for failing to support H.R. 8 last year.
The current COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted a number of gaps in our federal gun laws that will require federal action in the near future. Issues such as safe storage, loopholes that leave domestic violence survivors vulnerable to abuse, and a strain on our federal background checks system have all been magnified during the coronavirus outbreak. Electing gun safety champions to the Senate will ensure that Congress actually addresses these dangerous gaps.
About Giffords 2020 Political Efforts:
Giffords is also leading the effort to make this the year the country elects a #GunSafetyPresident. Congresswoman Giffords, recently announced her endorsement and the endorsement of Giffords PAC of Joe Biden for president of the United States of America. Vice President Biden has fought for stronger gun safety laws throughout his career and has promised it will be a top priority for his administration.
Congresswoman Giffords and Vice President Biden have a long history of working together to advance commonsense gun safety laws, especially in the wake of the tragic shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School. Biden was there to welcome Congresswoman Giffords back to the Capitol months after she was shot and then again at President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address.
Recently released polling showed that the issue of gun safety is becoming a major factor for voters, and one that is critical to winning elections in these areas of the country. Fifty-nine percent of suburban women in the swing states of Colorado, Minnesota, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Texas support stronger gun laws and say this issue is “very important” to their vote. An even larger group (64%) says that they would never vote for a candidate who didn’t support “requiring background checks on all gun sales,” outranking 13 other social and economic policy positions as the top voting determinant. Responses like these underscore that suburban women increasingly want a leader committed to gun safety.