U.S. Rep. Glen Grothman, R-Wis., showed little inclination to support new gun control measures at a town hall event on Tuesday in Wild Rose.
It was the first of several town hall meetings for Grothman during Congress’ August recess. The Glenbeulah Republican spoke about his trips to the U.S. border and work on the House Education and Labor Committee. The majority of questions from the 40 or so attendees were friendly, but several people asked about his stance on gun control in the wake of mass shootings over the weekend in El Paso, Texas and Dayton, Ohio.
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Some Republican leaders, including President Donald Trump and U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson, have signaled support for “red flag” laws, which could limit the ability of those with a violent history or a history of mental illness to have guns.
In an answer at the town hall, Grothman sent no such signals.
“We have a Second Amendment for a reason,” he told an attendee. “And I am not one of these people who’s out there trying to grab the guns.”
He countered concerns about mass shootings by saying that killings overall are declining, and said he favors tough-on-crime policies, including for juveniles, as a way of ensuring public safety. He also said many mass shooters intend to die by suicide.
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In comments after the town hall, he told WPR he would consider new proposals, but declined to comment on specifics.
“The red flag law, that could mean a variety of things,” he said. “Right now in this state, we have the ability to take away people’s rights if they’ve done certain things. We’ll see what new bills are introduced.”
Grothman was a longtime state legislator before running for Congress in 2014. His district includes cities of Sheboygan, Manitowoc, Fond du Lac and Oshkosh, and extends west into rural central Wisconsin, including Waushara and Columbia counties.
Grothman’s district is considered a safe Republican district. In 2016, it voted for Trump over Democrat Hillary Clinton by a margin of 56-39. Grothman won re-election in 2018 over Democrat Dan Kohl by about 10 points.
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