Misleading Attack on Murkowski’s Gun Vote

After a spate of mass shootings, Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska was one of 15 Republicans who voted in June for a gun bill that provides money for states that have or want to enact red-flag laws to temporarily remove firearms from people deemed to be a danger to themselves or others. States that do not have red-flag laws can use their funding for other programs, such as mental health and drug courts.

An ad from one of Murkowski’s challengers, Republican Kelly Tshibaka, cites that vote to misleadingly claim that Murkowski “voted for red-flag laws to restrict your Second Amendment rights and subject you to federal criminal investigation.” But the ad is running in Alaska, which does not have a red-flag law and is not required to adopt one.

Protecting the Second Amendment is a priority political issue in Alaska, which ranks third in average household firearm ownership rate, behind only Montana and Wyoming, according to the Rand Corporation, using data from 1980 to 2016. Nearly 2 out of 3 adults in Alaska live in households with guns.

Until her vote for the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, Murkowski had enjoyed an A rating from the National Rifle Association. But as the ad from Tshibaka notes, after that vote, the NRA dropped Murkowski to a B rating.