Bishop Scrubs Website of NRA Rating
Comes as Democrats are putting resources into trying to flip his district
As Democrats set their sights on Michigan’s 8th District, Republican Rep. Mike Bishopscrubbed his website of any trace of his past positions on guns.
Bishop’s campaign website removed his A/A+ rating from the National Rifle Association as well as his previous support for right-to-carry laws, The Detroit News reported.
Bishop’s campaign spokesman Stu Sandler said the changes were made to reflect the Republican’s priorities since his election in 2014.
“It hadn’t been revised since Mike Bishop was a candidate,” Sandler told Roll Call. “There’s no hidden agenda. All we were doing was revising the website to reflect the legislative issues.”
The changes come after the shooting at a Parkland, Florida, high school last month that killed 17 people. Many elected officials, particularly Republicans, are now facing criticism for support they have received from the NRA.
Last month, Bishop denied that the NRA’s support or the $4,000 he received from the organization influenced his decisions.
“The NRA doesn’t play very much in my district. I have been a Second Amendment defender — a defender of the Constitution my entire career,” he told the Detroit News last month.
Bishop said he supports efforts to improve school safety, like installing bullet-proof glass. But he also said he opposes both an assault weapons ban and arming teachers.
Bishop is being targeted by Democrats this election cycle.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee named his potential opponent Elissa Slotkin as one of the first candidates it would support in its “Red to Blue” program.
Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales rates the race Leans Republican.
Watch: ‘Vote Them Out’: Thousands March on Washington to Protest Inaction on Gun Violence
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