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Giffords
| Giffords | |
 | |
| Basic facts | |
| Founder(s): | Gabby Giffords and Mark Kelly |
| Year founded: | 2013 |
| Website: | Official website |
Giffords is a nonprofit organization that says, “We fight for stronger gun laws, hold the gun lobby accountable, and support candidates who stand for safer schools & communities.”[1] The organization comprises an advocacy and lobbying 501(c)(4), a hybrid political action committee, Giffords PAC, and a 501(c)(3), Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence.[2]
Giffords was founded in 2013 under the name Americans for Responsible Solutions.
Mission
As of April 2020, the Giffords website said the following:[2]
| “ |
At Giffords, we work to: Shift Culture We work to foster a culture where Americans are informed about what makes them safer and inspired to fight for a safer future. Change Policy We research, write, and propose policies that make Americans safer and mobilize voters, advocates, and lawmakers in support of safer gun laws. Challenge Injustice We hold the gun lobby and any special interests who seek to profit at the expense of public safety accountable.[3] |
” |
Background
Former U.S. Rep. Gabby Giffords (D-Ariz.) and her husband Mark Kelly founded the organization Americans for Responsible Solutions in 2013, after Giffords was critically wounded in a shooting at a constituent meeting in 2011 and in response to the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary in 2012.[4]
On January 8, 2011, Giffords was participating in a "Congress on Your Corner" event in Tucson, Arizona, when Jared Lee Loughner—since diagnosed with schizophrenia—shot Giffords in the head and killed six other people.[5][6]
In 2013, Giffords and Kelly formed Americans for Responsible Solutions, a 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization, and the related Americans for Responsible Solutions PAC.[7]
In 2016, Americans for Responsible Solutions merged with the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, and the organization was renamed Giffords.[4]
As of April 2020, the Giffords website said, "Since 2013, Giffords has helped write, pass, and enact legislation that is reducing gun violence and saving lives. Against fierce opposition, we have helped pass more than 290 new gun safety laws in 45 states and Washington DC … Our political program has helped elevate gun safety from a third rail to a top electoral issue in some of the nation’s most competitive campaigns."[8]
Political activity
Click here to view a list of candidates endorsed by Giffords.
2018 elections
Endorsements
Giffords' 2018 endorsements included:
- Hiral Tipirneni (D)
- Gil Cisneros (D)
- Jason Crow (D)
- Mikie Sherrill (D)
Ads targeting Gov. Rick Scott
On February 19, 2018, Giffords launched a "strong six figures" ad campaign against Gov. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) ahead of his announcement that he would run for Senate in 2018. The ad charged that "Gov. Rick Scott made it illegal for a doctor to ask a patient if they owned a gun, even a mental health professional."[9]
2016 elections
Endorsements and opposition
Below is a list of the candidates Americans for Responsible Solutions PAC supported and opposed in 2016.
| Supported and opposed candidates, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Party | State | Stance | ARS PAC spending |
| Mark Kirk[10] |  |
Ill. |  |
N/A |
| Pat Toomey[10] | |
Pa. | |
N/A |
| Catherine Cortez Masto[11] |  |
Nev. | |
N/A |
| Michael Bennet[12] | |
Colo. | |
N/A |
| Kelly Ayotte[13] | |
N.H. |  |
$834,278[14] |
In an opinion piece for CNN announcing the endorsements, Giffords and Kelly wrote, "In a stark reversal of common political practice, candidates are scrambling to communicate their support for gun safety. Why? Because voters are demanding it. And because we're holding lawmakers in the gun lobby's grip accountable."[15]
2014 elections
Endorsements and opposition
Below is a list of the candidates Americans for Responsible Solutions PAC supported and opposed in 2014.[16]
| Supported and opposed candidates, 2014 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Party | State | Stance | ARS PAC spending |
| Martha McSally | |
Ariz. | |
$1,822,767.70 |
| Kay Hagan | |
N.C. | |
$975,284.00 |
| Marilinda Garcia | |
N.H. | |
$532,512.40 |
| Frank Guinta | |
N.H. | |
$529,350.00 |
| Joni Ernst | |
Iowa | |
$480,500.00 |
| Michael G. Fitzpatrick | |
Pa. | |
$373,571.50 |
| Bill Cassidy | |
La. | |
$341,272.00 |
| David Young | |
Iowa | |
$276,150.00 |
| Mark Udall | |
Colo. | |
$272,103.00 |
| Susan Collins | |
Maine | |
$259,868.80 |
| Ron Barber | |
Ariz. | |
$238,585.00 |
| Mary Landrieu | |
La. | |
$229,169.00 |
| Al Franken | |
Minn. | |
$160,898.40 |
| Michael Coffman | |
Colo. | |
$131,008.00 |
| Jeanne Shaheen | |
N.H. | |
$130,845.00 |
| Scott Brown | |
N.H. | |
$69,800.00 |
| Mark Warner | |
Va. | |
$41,000.00 |
| Greg Orman |  |
Kan. | |
$25,695.40 |
| Gary Peters | |
Mich. | |
$15,350.00 |
| Andrew Romanoff | |
Colo. | |
$4,750.00 |
Of the 2014 campaign activity, Kelly told Politico, "We need leaders who are ready to shatter the tired myth that you can’t be both pro-gun rights and pro-gun violence prevention."[17]
Ballot measure activity
Americans for Responsible Solutions PAC supported Maine's Background Checks for Gun Sales initiative, which was on the November 8, 2016, ballot. The group contributed $47,158.70 to Mainers for Responsible Gun Ownership Fund.[18]
Overview of ballot measure support and opposition
The following table details Americans for Responsible Solutions PAC's ballot measure stances available on Ballotpedia:
| Ballot measure support and opposition for Americans for Responsible Solutions PAC | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ballot measure | Year | Position | Amount | Status |
| Maine Background Checks for Gun Sales, Question 3 (2016) | 2016 | Supported | $47,158.70[18] |  Defeated
|
Legislation
As of 2016, Americans for Responsible Solutions promoted legislation at the state level.[19] In 2015, the group worked in Oregon to promote legislative actions that aimed to establish universal background checks, ensure safe storage of firearms in homes with children and prohibit those convicted of domestic violence misdemeanors from purchasing firearms.[20] In 2015, the state passed legislation that made it illegal for those convicted of domestic violence to own a firearm.[21] The state also enacted the Oregon Firearms Safety Act, which mandated background checks for all firearms transfers.[22]
Finances
The following table details the receipts and expenditures for the Americans for Responsible Solutions PAC for the fiscal years 2013 to 2016 according to documents filed with the Federal Election Commission.
| Annual receipts and expenditures for the Americans for Responsible Solutions PAC, 2013–2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Total Receipts | Total Expenditures |
| 2016[23] | $7,062,307 | $9,438,189 |
| 2015[24] | $6,406,249 | $4,008,558 |
| 2014[25] | $8,857,021.67 | $13,108,215.33 |
| 2013[26] | $12,486,335.57 | $6,423,064.07 |
The following is a breakdown of Americans for Responsible Solutions' total revenue and expenses for 2014, as reported to the IRS.
| Total revenue and expenses for the Americans for Responsible Solutions, 2014 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Total revenue | Total expenses |
| 2014[27] | $1,135,657 | $415,527 |
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Facebook, "Giffords," accessed April 29, 2020
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Giffords, "About," accessed April 29, 2020
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Giffords, "History," accessed April 29, 2020
- ↑ Los Angeles Times, "Jared Loughner sentenced to life in Tucson mass shooting," November 8, 2012
- ↑ Arizona Republic, "Gabrielle Giffords shooting: As it unfolded," January 14, 2011
- ↑ USA Today, "Giffords and Kelly: Fighting gun violence," January 8, 2013
- ↑ Giffords, "Our Victories," accessed April 29, 2020
- ↑ Bradenton Herald, "Giffords gun control group goes after Rick Scott, running ads in four markets," February 19, 2018
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Politico, "Giffords' anti-gun violence PAC endorses Toomey, Kirk," August 22, 2016
- ↑ ARS, "ARS PAC Endorse Catherine Cortez Masto For United States Senate," August 23, 2016
- ↑ NewsMax, "Sens. Toomey, Kirk Gain Support of Giffords' Anti-Gun Violence PAC," August 22, 2016
- ↑ FEC, "Americans for Responsible Solutions PAC," accessed August 23, 2016
- ↑ Between January 2015 and August 23, 2016
- ↑ CNN, "America finds its voice on gun safety," August 22, 2016
- ↑ FEC, "Americans for Responsible Solutions PAC," accessed August 23, 2016
- ↑ Politico, "Giffords group targets 2014 races," June 3, 2014
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 Maine Commission on Governmental Ethics & Election Practices, "Maine Ethics Commission Public Disclosure Site," accessed June 21, 2016
- ↑ NPR, "In Campaign For Tougher Gun Laws, Advocates Focus On States," January 6, 2016
- ↑ Oregon Public Health Association, "Americans for Responsible Solutions: 2015 Gun violence Legislative Agenda," accessed January 7, 2016
- ↑ Oregon State Legislature, "SB 525," May 19, 2015
- ↑ Oregon State Legislature, "SB 941," accessed January 7, 2016
- ↑ FEC, "Americans for Responsible Solutions PAC Year-End Report, 2016," accessed July 17, 2017
- ↑ FEC, "Americans for Responsible Solutions PAC FEC Form 3X (2015)," accessed August 23, 2016
- ↑ FEC, "Americans for Responsible Solutions PAC FEC Form 3X (2014)," accessed January 6, 2016
- ↑ FEC, "Americans for Responsible Solutions PAC FEC Form 3X (2013)," accessed January 6, 2016
- ↑ Guidestar, "IRS Form 990, Americans for Responsible Solutions (2014)," accessed August 23, 2016
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