Gabby Watch

Ontheissues.org, a non-partisan voter awareness group rated Gabby as a moderate-liberal in the Spring of 2007.

Now in the summer of 2008, On The Issues has changed their mind about Gabby’s so-called “moderate” positions. Now, she is rated as a HARDCORE LIBERAL.

So how does the incumbent, Ms. Giffords explain this one? She can’t. The fact of the matter is that when she is in Arizona, she talks about Arizona’s libertarian and conservative values, and tries to fool people into believing that she is a true Arizonan. But as soon as she steps one toe off of an airplane at Dulles or Reagan National, she is not an Arizonan. She is a politician who stands rank-and-file behind the most liberal officials in Washington.

If Gabby continues to keep pretending that she is a moderate then she obviously thinks her constituents are dumb.

Giffords Supports Tax Increases over Cutting Wasteful Washington Spending
 

Washington- Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (AZ-0 fulfilled her role as part of Washington’s tax-and-spend society today when she loyally sided with her Democrat leaders in passing an AMT “patch.” The bill was chocked full of tax increases, including $13.5 billion in tax increases that would stifle American efforts to produce domestic energy, while exempting Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez from these same tax increases (House Roll Call 455).

Unable to find a single spending cut in the interest of sparing Americans’ hard-earned tax dollars, Giffords voted to kill the amendment which would have eliminated these burdensome tax hikes from the AMT “patch” (House Roll Call 454).

“Gabrielle Giffords has once again failed her constituents in Arizona by voting for tax increases that only weaken our economy by reaching into her constituents’ wallets,” said NRCC spokesman Ken Spain. “Taxpayers in Arizona deserve a representative who will be a good steward of their money instead of throwing it away on wasteful Washington spending.”

Just as the House voted on the AMT bill, fellow Democrat Rep. Jim Cooper said that it was a “mistake” to pass the bill with these tax increases, stating that because the Democrats couldn’t find a single spending cut, this bill would “punish” the wrong people: 

“The first choice should always be spending cuts.  Now, if anybody thinks that there is no program in government that couldn’t be cut, I think they are mistaken.  But, we’re not very good at finding those cuts.  Because, the way that the system works here in Washington is that you only get rewarded for adding spending, because whoever benefits from that individual program that should be cut, they’ll scream like crazy and complain.”   (CSPAN, 6/25/0

This is what Congresswoman Giffords wants you to believe:

“As a gun owner, I am a strong supporter of the Second Amendment. In February, I was proud to sign the Amicus Brief in District of Columbia v. Heller asking the Supreme Court to uphold the lower court ruling that overturned the long standing DC gun ban.

This is a common sense decision that reaffirms the Constitutional right—and Arizona tradition—of owning firearms. I commend the Court for ruling in favor of restoring our right to bear arms.” Congresswoman Giffords on the Supreme Court Ruling on Heller.

This is the truth:

-Giffords is a director of a group that opposes the right of Americans to own firearms.
-Giffords’ legislative record is one that has opposed gun rights.
-Giffords has taken positions on gun rights that are unconstitutional.

Giffords has a record of opposing gun rights for Americans. In fact, while she mentions her support of gun ownership, she didn’t mention that she is a member of the board of directors of the Anti Defamation League (ADL), which filed an amicus brief arguing against the right of Americans to own firearms so states can retain the ability to keep guns out of the hands of “violent bigots.” They go on to say, “Gun violence and the caching of dangerous weapons are commonplace among extremists.” Giffords has never called upon the Anti Defamation League to retract their hateful statements that gun collectors are extremists. Nor, did she resign from the board in protest of their statements.

Giffords legislative record also proves that she was never a friend of gun owners. As an Arizona legislator, she voted against restricting municipalities who wanted to impose restrictions on the sale of firearms and ammunition (2003, HB 2319). Giffords also voted against HCR 2025 (2003), which called for protecting gun shows from additional regulation or elimination.

Her record in Congress isn’t any better. Giffords chose not to be a co-sponsor of HR 1399, which would specifically guarantee Second Amendment rights to DC citizens and repeal the gun ban, that was just declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court, even though the majority of Representatives did sign on as a co-sponsor. This raises an embarrassing question, why did Giffords praise the Supreme Court’s ruling, but refuse to co-sponsor a bill that would have done the same thing?

Giffords has opposed other measures that protect law abiding gun owners. She decided not to cosponsor H.R. 4900, a bipartisan bill that will reform the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (BATFE). The bill would limit disclosures on firearm data, ban a centralized electronic database of dealer records, and make other changes that will limit BATFE abuses that have been documented in the recent past. There are over 100 sponsors and co-sponsors of HR 4900 from both the Democratic and Republican parties. But Giffords is strangely quiet on this pro gun owner legislation.

Giffords has also taken public stands that are unconstitutional and at odds with American’s rights under the Second Amendment. In 2000, she favored banning the sale or transfer of semi-automatic guns, except those used for hunting (2000 Arizona State National Political Awareness Test Nov 1, 2000). In 2006 she said she favored reauthorizing the Assault Weapons Ban.

But, both of these positions were found to be unconstitutional by the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court found that arms, “in common use at the time,” are protected by the Second Amendment (554 U. S., pg. 53 (2008)). And, semi automatic firearms (including those covered in the Brady Assault Weapons Ban) have been in common use for over a century. In fact, Giffords says she owns a 9 mm Glock, which would be illegal if semi-automatics were banned as she wanted (AZ Daily Star, 3/24/08, pg1).

Giffords opinion limiting semi-automatics to hunting purposes is also unconstitutional. The Heller ruling made it quite clear that the Second Amendment protects an individual’s right to own a firearm for traditional lawful purposes of self defense (554 U. S. pg. 56 (2008)). Therefore, her view that the government can limit a class of gun only to hunting purposes is unconstitutional.

So, don’t be fooled by Giffords’ talk that she supports the Second Amendment right of individuals to own firearms. As a director of the ADL, she allowed an anti-gun rights amicus brief to be filed. In Congress and the Arizona Legislature, she has failed to support bipartisan bills that supported the right of lawful citizens to own firearms. She has supported restricting the ownership of semi-automatics, even though she owns one. And, she espouses unconstitutional positions that restrict the right of Americans to own firearms.

Maybe it’s time to defeat Giffords so she can come back home and rediscover the Arizona tradition of owning firearms.

Void of Energy Solutions, Some Democrats Look to Hugo Chavez for Answers

Washington– With gas prices continuing to skyrocket and no plan of her own to offer up, does Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (AZ-0 endorse a prominent Democrat’s plan to nationalize the energy industry? Clearly devoid of any ideas or solutions, Democrats are taking a page from Venezuelan Dictator Hugo Chavez’s book and calling for a government takeover of America’s oil refineries. While these half-baked “solutions” might seem misguided or even comical, Gabrielle Giffords has refused to state her public position one way or the other. 

At a press conference yesterday, Rep. Maurice Hinchey (D-NY), a member of the House Natural Resources Committee had this to say: 

“Should the people of the United States own refineries? Maybe so. Frankly, I think that’s a good idea…So if there’s any seriousness about what some of our Republican colleagues are saying…about improving the number of refineries, then maybe they’d be willing to have these refineries owned publicly.” (Rep. Maurice Hinchey, 6/18/08) 

Rep. Giffords, who continues to choose partisanship over productivity, has not yet weighed in on this newest proposal to socialize America’s energy industry.

“Arizona voters deserve to know whether Gabrielle Giffords wants to reshape America’s energy industry by government fiat,” said NRCC spokesman Ken Spain. “While Giffords and Democrats in Washington are busy tearing pages out of Hugo Chavez’s socialist playbook, the American people are hurting at the pump. The time for action on gas prices is now, and Gabrielle Giffords’ record of standing with her do-nothing Democrat leadership will not sit well with voters in November.”

While Democrats have been standing in the way of sensible energy solutions for years, a recent Rasmussen poll shows that 67 percent of Americans support expanding production of American-made energy. Washington Democrats are at odds with the overwhelming majority of voters across the country. The American people are screaming to be heard, but is Gabrielle Giffords?

Giffords voted against an increase in funding for America’s missle defense system. The money would have been spent to counter Iranian ballistic missiles that can currently hit Europe and could eventually hit the US (Roll Call 368, May 17, 2007).

Doing the Unthinkable, Giffords Stands Idly Alongside Democrat Leadership Watching Soaring Gas Prices Continue to Rise

Washington- As people in Arizona are emptying their wallets trying to afford gasoline that is rapidly nearing $4 per gallon, Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (AZ-0 has thrown the needs of her constituents to the wind as she voted four times this week alone against proposals to address America’s energy crisis.

“Gabrielle Giffords’ unconscionable actions this week show that she has become part of the problem in Washington – and would rather be a lapdog to her party leadership than provide her constituents with much-needed relief at the pump,” said NRCC Spokesman Ken Spain.  “The voters in Arizona sent Gabrielle Giffords to Washington to help fix their problems, not to make them worse.  Giffords’ votes this week are evidence that she is out of touch with the needs of her constituents.”

Since coming to Congress, Gabrielle Giffords has joined the 86 percent of Democrats who have built a record of hampering all efforts to increase the production of American-made oil and gas.  As Sunday’s Lexington Herald-Leader pointed out, because of Gabrielle Giffords and the Democrats’ inaction on energy issues, low-income families are being hit the hardest as gas prices continue to soar:

“When the economy takes a tumble, the poor are often the first to feel the pain…. ‘The economy is affecting the low- to moderate-income individuals a great deal more than it is anybody else,’ said Johnny Cantrell, chief executive officer of Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Central Kentucky….  So higher food and gas prices reduce people’s ability to cover other expenses, such as utilities and clothing.  …folks will let those payments slide because they have a more pressing need: putting food on the table.” (Lexington Herald-Leader, 6/1/08) 

Gabrielle Giffords and her Democrat colleagues have failed to bring forward any proposals to address America’s energy crisis, and now they’re obstructing every other member of Congress from trying to lower gas prices as well.  How much longer will voters in Arizona have to bear the burden of Gabrielle Giffords’ broken promises and failed policies?