Rivals find common ground in Supreme Court gun decision

U.S. Rep. Gabrielle GiffordsU.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Tucson) and state Senate President Tim Bee (R-Tucson) disagree about many things: the Supreme Court's decision to overturn the handgun ban in Washington, D.C. isn't among them.

Both Giffords, the freshman Democratic representative from the 8th district, and Bee, who is running against her for the seat, praised the high court's decision.

"I applaud the Supreme Court’s historic decision to protect an individual’s rights," said Bee. "The decision is a victory for Constitutional Rights. The Second Amendment, the right to keep and bear arms, is vitally important and must be held sacrosanct. We will continue our vigilance in the protection of these rights deemed to be the bedrock of our collective freedoms by the Framers and the Ratifiers of the Constitution.”

Giffords sounded a similar note, saying, "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."

That brief was also signed by fellow freshman Democrat Harry Mitchell (D-Tempe), as well as the four Republicans in the Arizona House delegation.

"This is a common sense decision that reaffirms the Constitutional right—and Arizona tradition—of owning firearms," Giffords continued. "I commend the Court for ruling in favor of restoring our right to bear arms."

Giffords joined Mitchell, 1st Congressional District candidate Ann Kirkpatrick and 3rd Congressional District candidate Bob Lord, both Democrats, in praising the decision. Arizona Democrats are traditionally leery of being portrayed as anti-Second Amendment, as the rapid statements put out by all four campaigns attests.