Sen. Mark Kelly criticized a comment made by Arizona Republican Senate hopeful Kari Lake that involved calling on voters to “strap on a Glock.”
“It’s dangerous,” Mr. Kelly, Arizona Democrat, said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” Sunday. “What Kari Lake said could result in people getting hurt or killed.”
During a campaign event last month, Ms. Lake told the crowd that, “They’re coming after us with lawfare, they’re going to come after us with everything. That’s why the next six months is going to be intense.”
“We’re going to strap on our, our seat belt. We’re going to put on our helmet or your Kari Lake ball cap. We are going to put on the armor of God. And maybe strap on a Glock on the side of us just in case,” she said.
Mr. Kelly said word choice matters for Senate candidates.
“When you’re a candidate for the United States Senate, you need to be careful with your words. We’ve seen this throughout history,” he said. “So I hope people reject that. I think they should consider their language and try to do better going forward.”
Ms. Lake is running for Arizona’s other Senate seat against Rep. Ruben Gallego, a Democrat.
Gun control is important to Mr. Kelly, whose wife is former Rep. Gabby Giffords.
“She was shot in the head while meeting with her constituents. Six people died. Another 18, including her, were injured. It was a horrific act of political violence,” Mr. Kelly said.
“We need people in elected office that want to take this country in a better direction where we accept the outcome of elections, where we don’t use language to try to incite our supporters. We don’t need folks in the United States Senate that they’re comfortable using language like that,” he said.
• Mallory Wilson can be reached at mwilson@washingtontimes.com.
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