Political hysteria has made Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand forgetful apparently.
The New York Democrat says that Judge Brett Kavanaugh holds “shocking and worrisome” opinions on the Second Amendment – which is odd, because Gillibrand used to think the same way as the Supreme Court nominee. Not long ago her voting record was almost identical to his Second Amendment thinking.
[Also read: Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh on the major issues]
Listeners to a recent Crooked Media podcast wouldn’t have guessed that though. Gillibrand told Symone Sanders that Kavanaugh was “really bad” on guns:
Gillibrand was referring to Kavanaugh’s 2011 dissent in the second Heller case where Kavanaugh disagreed with the majority of the D.C. Circuit Court and wrote that, just like the ban on semi-automatic handguns, any ban on semi-automatic rifles was “unconstitutional.” She used to think that way too.
When the Supreme Court struck down the D.C. gun ban the first time around in 2008 and when she was still a member of the House of Representatives, Gillibrand actually voted for legislation to stop the city council from imposing regulation retroactively. Toward that same end, Gillibrand even co-sponsored a bill called “The Second Amendment Enforcement Act.”
Votes like that weren’t out of the ordinary for Gillibrand, who earned an “A” rating from the National Rifle Association and who boasted about keeping a rifle at home under her bed. But to be fair, Gillibrand has changed her stance on the Second Amendment. After moving over to the Senate, she became “ashamed and embarrassed” about her former views and votes.
Maybe that shift has less to do with shame and more to do with ambition though. Around the time of her conversion on guns, Gillibrand started getting attention as a possible 2016 contender. Now her name is being floated in earnest for 2020 and, if she goes for it, Gillibrand will have to explain her flip-flop. Republicans certainly won’t let anyone forget.
