Indivisible Central New Jersey, a grassroots group of over 1,000 members, condemns the August 17 endorsement by Giffords, the gun-safety organization founded by former Rep. Gabby Giffords, of Rep. Leonard Lance for re-election in New Jersey’s 7th congressional district.
Congressman Lance, who is campaigning for re-election in a highly contested district, has recently adopted a few moderate positions on specific gun safety issues, including background checks, concealed carry legislation, and bump stocks. But in view of his voting history, we doubt his commitment to these positions. He currently has a 93% rating from the National Rifle Association – tying him for the most NRA-favorable rating among all New Jersey House members, along with Reps. Frank LoBiondo (NJ2) and Tom MacArthur (NJ3). Since his election to the House in 2010, Congressman Lance has consistently scored NRA grades of “A-“ and “A.”
Congressman Lance’s opponent, former Assistant Secretary of State Tom Malinowski, is supported by most gun safety activists within the district, and has been named by Moms Demand Action as a 2018 Gun Sense Candidate. Malinowski’s 10-point plan for gun safety, which includes universal background checks, an assault weapons ban, and tracing of firearms sales, is both more comprehensive and more specific than Rep. Lance’s. And Mr. Malinowski’s record in the State Department as a dogged advocate for human rights, including working closely with Sen. John McCain against torture, makes us confident that he will follow through on these positions.
Indivisible Central NJ is more than perplexed, then, by Giffords’ decision to endorse Congressman Lance. The endorsement aligns neither with the realities of the congressman’s voting record nor with any reasonable comparison to his opponent’s positions. We cannot but view the Giffords endorsement as at best ill-informed, or at worst as a cynical attempt to appear bipartisan.
The Giffords endorsement undercuts and damages years of work by nonpartisan gun safety advocates within the district. Indivisible Central New Jersey condemns the Giffords endorsement of Leonard Lance, and demands that Giffords rescind the endorsement immediately.
Contact: indivisiblecentralnj@gmail.com
NOTES
Everytown for Gun Safety NRA Grades Archive
https://everytown.org/nra-grades-archive/
Giffords 2018 NJ House Endorsements
https://giffords.org/state/new-jersey/
Tom Malinowski Statement on Gun Safety
https://malinowskifornj.com/breaking-the-nra/
Moms Demand Action
https://gunsensevoter.org/?source=fbmo_gun_sense_candidate_lookup&refcode=fbmo_gun_sense_candidate_lookup
NRA Ratings of New Jersey House Representatives: https://votesmart.org/interest-group/1034/rating/10178?p=2&of=office#.W3f9uLgpC00