CONCORD, N.H. — Some in the Granite State are saying "shame on Sununu" in response to the governor vetoing three gun-control measures last week.
New Hampshire advocates for curbs on gun violence held a press conference on Monday at the Legislative Office Building to express their concern that Gov. Chris Sununu wasn't taking action after recent shootings in Gilroy, California; El Paso, Texas; and Dayton, Ohio. The three bills would have required background checks and waiting periods for gun purchasers, and would have banned guns from schools in the state.
Tracy Hahn-Burkett, leader of the Kent Street Coalition Working Group on Gun Violence Prevention, said Sununu's actions seem out of touch with his constituents' needs.
"People are just so tired of being scared across the country, but including in New Hampshire,” Hahn-Burkett said. “People are starting to consider, 'Well, it's time to buy back-to-school supplies for the kids. Should we buy a bulletproof backpack?' How is it OK that we're here as a society?"
Sununu has said that he doesn't believe the bills would stop mass shootings, and called them an infringement on the constitutional rights of New Hampshire residents.
Supporters of the bills say they are common sense and are meant to curb gun violence, not to take guns away from law-abiding owners. Hahn-Burkett said Sununu is siding with the gun lobby instead of the 9-in-10 New Hampshire residents who support background checks for gun purchasers.
"You can still have a gun culture and yet have common-sense gun restrictions to work towards having a safer public,” she said.
As a candidate in 2016, Sununu said he would support legislation for universal background checks.
