The Colorado chapter of Moms Demand Action and Students Demand Action, both part of Everytown for Gun Safety, today released the following statement following reports that Lauren Boebert attended a fundraiser hosted by Tom Ready, a longtime GOP donor who has spread conspiracy theories about the 2012 Sandy Hook school shooting. Ready previously questioned whether the shooting – in which 26 children and adults were shot and killed – really happened.
“Everyone should be asking Boebert if she also questions the death of 26 people at Sandy Hook Elementary School – including 20 young children and my sister Mary – and the very real grief of 26 families, including my own, who will never see their loved ones again,” said said Jane Dougherty, a volunteer with Colorado Moms Demand Action and senior fellow with Everytown’s Survivor Network whose sister, Mary was the brave school psychologist who was shot and killed in the 2012 Sandy Hook shooting. “Boebert’s constant disrespect for gun violence survivors and extreme opposition to common-sense gun safety continues to fuel our fire to do everything we can to elect Diane Mitsch Bush and keep Boebert as far away from Congress as possible.”
Last week, Boebert accepted the endorsement of Gun Owners of America, an extreme gun group that has vowed to defend the 17-year-old who shot and killed two protesters in Kenosha and has promoted the theory that the mass shooting at an Aurora theater – which killed 12 people and wounded 70 – was “a false flag attack orchestrated by the federal government.”
Last month, U.S Senator Cory Gardner was seen campaigning with Boebert, despite reports that Boebert may have violated Colorado law by allowing an under-age server at her restaurant to carry a handgun, and that Boebert has a history of minor arrests and skipping court dates. According to the Colorado Times Recorder, GOA’s December 2014 newsletter featured a photo of Gardner.