Former Arizona Congresswoman Gabby Giffords, who was shot in the head during a 2011 mass shooting in Tucson, Arizona, testified in support of Initiative 594 in Olympia on Tuesday. The initiative would require background checks for most gun sales and transfers, even those between individuals.
“Now is the time to come together, be responsible, Democrats, Republicans, everyone. We must never stop fighting; fight, fight, fight” Giffords said.
Giffords was joined by her husband, retired astronaut Mark Kelly, and Cheryl Stumbo, who survived Seattle’s 2006 Jewish Federation shooting. Brian Judy of the National Rifle Association also testified at the packed hearing. He called what happened to Giffords and Stumbo “unspeakable evil.”
“But along with the empathy I feel for these victims, I feel disappointment that these tragedies would be exploited to push such a far reaching anti-gun agenda, especially an agenda with no relation to either of these incidents,” he said.
Judy noted that both the Tucson and Jewish Federation shooters passed background checks to legally purchase their guns. I-594 and a competing pro-gun rights measure, Initiative 591, are before the legislature. If lawmakers don’t act on them, they would appear on Washington’s November ballot.