Continuing his campaign against the National Rifle Association, Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., on Tuesday issued a report detailing the gun group’s attempts to loosen gun laws in state capitols.
As part of what it calls the NRA’s “radical legislative agenda,” the report cites an Indiana law that allows its citizens to fire in self-protection, even at police officers.
Other states, including Ohio and Tennessee, allow residents to carry concealed weapons in bars; and, in Arkansas, members of a congregation can bring a gun to church.
“The NRA’s bizarre, unhinged behavior has been on full display since the December 14th tragedy in Newtown, but a closer look at their multimillion dollar lobbying efforts in state legislatures across the country reveals some of the most depraved ideas ever submitted to a legislative body,” said Murphy.
Benjamin Van Houten, an attorney with the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, said the NRA “gets a foothold in one or two states…then pushes those extreme measures to other states.”
He said the shootings in Newtown prompted 25 states, including Connecticut, to seek stricter gun laws.
But Van Houten said there are proposals in 37 state legislatures backed by the NRA that would loosen restrictions on firearms.
“Some of those bills are extremely dangerous,” he said.
The NRA did not have an immediate response to Murphy’s report.