WASHINGTON – Rep. Scott Tipton, R-Cortez, released a statement Thursday on Facebook condemning the sit-in by Democrats on the floor of the House.
Nearly 100 Democrats took control of the chamber Wednesday, demanding action be taken on gun control reform in the wake of the mass shooting in Orlando, Florida.
“I firmly believe that the demonstration was nothing more than a publicity stunt and a distraction from the real issue at hand: terrorism,” Tipton said in the statement.
He went on to say that increasing restrictions on firearms for lawful citizens will not stop violent attacks.
“We absolutely must make sure the processes we have in place to alert federal law enforcement agencies of attempts to buy firearms by individuals on the terrorist watch list are functioning properly, but I will not support any efforts to strip lawful Americans of their due-process rights or right to bear arms based on their name being added to a secret government list.”
Weary but jubilant House Democrats ended their extraordinary sit-in on the chamber’s floor Thursday more than 24 hours after it began, a protest that let them broadcast their demands around the world for gun-control votes in the wake of the nightclub shooting, The Associated Press reported.
There were no indications that Republicans who run the House had granted Democrats’ insistence for votes on bills strengthening background checks and barring firearms sales to people on the government’s no-fly list.
Even so, 25½ hours after they commandeered the chamber and blasted images of themselves on social media, Democrats filed out and declared victory.
“We are going to win this struggle,” said Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga., the civil rights icon who helped lead the sit-in.
Hours earlier, Republicans had exited the Capitol, branding the remarkable sit-in a publicity stunt and summarily adjourning the chamber at about 3:15 a.m. EDT until after the Fourth of July.
The Associated Press contributed to this story. Kate Magill is a student at American University in Washington, D.C., and an intern for The Durango Herald. Reach her at kmagill@durangoherald.com.