A gun control group founded by former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.) is targeting vulnerable Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) over a concealed carry reciprocity bill that will be marked up in his committee on Wednesday.
Her nonprofit called Giffords is launching a five-figure digital ad buy, provided first to The Hill, that will target 25,000 voters in Issa’s southern California district. The ad urges voters to call on him to oppose the Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act of 2017 that would permit licensed gun owners to carry their firearms in other states that have their own concealed carry laws.
The bill stipulates that those with a valid gun-carry permit can bring the firearm into any state as long as they carry that permit, valid photo ID and abide by that state’s gun laws.
{mosads}Giffords’s group argues that the bill would allow stalkers and domestic abusers to carry concealed firearms. Critics of the bill say it opens the door for those criminals to obtain a permit in a less restrictive state and bring the legally registered firearm back into a state where they wouldn’t be able to obtain a permit.
But supporters note that these individuals are already prohibited from having a gun under current law and that the bill has a provision that excludes those people from “possessing, transporting, shipping, or receiving a firearm.”
“Even after two of the nation’s worst mass shootings, Darrell Issa is working to weaken our gun laws,” the ad says, after invoking the recent mass shootings in Las Vegas and Texas. “He’s accepted thousands in cash from the gun lobby, and now he’s supporting their agenda.”
Issa sits on the House Judiciary Committee, which will do a markup of the bill on Wednesday. He’s one of 213 co-sponsors, and the bill is also expected to go to a committee vote.
Issa is considered a top Democratic target in 2018. In 2016, he won reelection by less than a point, while Hillary Clinton carried his district by more than 7 points.
The ad also highlights the California Republican’s donations from the National Rifle Association (NRA). Issa has received $29,200 in campaign contributions from the NRA.
Giffords was a victim of gun violence in 2011 when she was shot in the head by a gunman during a public appearance in Arizona. She has since advocated for gun safety and stricter gun laws through several groups she and her husband, retired astronaut Mark Kelly, have founded.
Updated at 10:05 a.m.