Gillibrand's Rifles Are No Longer Under Her Bed

A 2008 photograph of Sen. Gillibrand with her two sons and husband

After Senator Kirsten Gillibrand told Newsday that she and her husband keep two rifles under their bed in their upstate home, the newly appointed Senator has decided to move the rifles. Her spokesman Matt Canter told Newsday, "Given that the location of the guns has been disclosed, they have been moved for security reasons."

Critics had questioned why the rifles, which Gillibrand implied were there for her and her husband to use to protect themselves, were under the bed, which may be accessible to children and where robbers tend to look first. Canter also told Newsday that Gillibrand "kept the ammunition separate from the empty guns," and then "later called to add that the rifles were locked in a case while stored under the bed." The NY State Rifle & Pistol Association president Tom King spoke to the Times Union: He said that "while gun storage is a matter for the individual owner to decide, 'I'm a firm believer that firearms should be stored safely so that children can't get at them.'" And another King—Rep. Peter King, who may seek to be Gillibrand's Republican challenger in 2010—joked to Newsday, "With Kirsten Gillibrand keeping two rifles under the bed and Chuck Schumer being so anti-gun, Schumer and Gillibrand have to be the Senate's oddest couple."

The New Yorkers Against Gun Violence will hold a rally at City Hall on Thursday to ask Gillibrand to pass three gun control bills. And Politico wonders why Gillibrand, who claims not to be a hunter, got a Montana hunting license.

Contact the author of this article or email tips@gothamist.com with further questions, comments or tips.

By Jen Chung in News on February 17, 2009 11:25 AM

Comments [rss]

RedWhiteandBrooklyn

A Remington pump action 12 gauge shotgun is my home security weapon of choice. I keep it in a safe spot, unloaded, but with shells nearby. A few years ago I woke up to the sound of someone trying to jimmy the lock on my door. I grabbed my shotgun and said "Listen carefully. Do you recognize this sound?" and I put a shell into the chamber. I suppose that he must have remembered that unmistakable sound from somewhere, because he ran down the stairs so fast that he fell and tumbled a bit. Too bad!

Gun control = breathe steady, keep your eyes open and on the target, and squeeze the trigger gently.

And NO... I am not a republican or a right winger.

NannyState

Quite big tits.

Future Taliban

"Given that the location of the guns has been disclosed, they have been moved for security reasons."

I hope those guns are safely up their anuses by now.

aspiringrapper

Uh oh! Potential security breach in Stupidsville, NY.

She does kind of look evil. Like Satan with a smile. Either that, or just another incompetent politician.

EastRiver

She's a Democrat with an Ivy League education. You would think that would be enough to get the left wing nut jobs off her back.

Politburo

You don't understand left wing nutjobs if you'd make such a statement. These are people who supported Obama for over a year, gave him a lot of money, and helped elect him President, and then immediately turned on him based on the choice of a pastor at the inauguration. The left and pragmatism seem to be like oil and water. It's really quite frustrating.

(I also disagreed with Obama's decision, but understood it was mostly inconsequential in the grand scheme.. and obviously not everyone on the left turned against Obama, this is just one example of the left eating their own)

ANGRYGOD11

Every president after Reagan has a Ivy League degree. Not sure what that means.

EastRiver

Because the elitists on the left love an Ivy League diploma as a sign of superior intelligence. Not sure why you single out the Presidency after Reagan because that's a whopping sample four individuals.

And Politburo, I was being sarcastic.

Politburo

ANGRYGOD provides an obvious counter-example to your claim (whether or not your claim is genuine, I don't know.. nor do I really care at this point, since it's still based on an inaccurate stereotype). People on the left just don't bow down to an ivy league diploma like you (and others) claim they do. If that were the case, Bush would have been a god. That was probably what AG was getting at with his comment.

As for other counter-examples, check out the education of, say, John Yoo or Ken Starr. Now tell me how people on the left perceive those individuals...

EastRiver

Like I said, I was being sarcastic. But yeah, plenty of liberals/Democrats/etc. (not to get hung up on labels) do cite the Ivy League diploma when it suits them i.e. when their candidate has one or more and the other guy doesn't. I wouldn't expect them to get excited about George W. Bush's degrees. On this site alone in the last year I've probably seen several dozen citations of Obama's Harvard Law degree as a major qualification for the Presidency and Caroline Kennedy's JD from Columbia as a major qualification for being a Senator. And I've seen plenty of comments about Bush's cabinet members alma maters.

Felix Hoenikker

A little kid can't cock a 12ga, even if ammo and the trigger were unlocked.

Spirit of 76

Wasn't there a story here a few months back about a little kid who got upset at his babysitter then went to the closet, got a gun and shot the guy?

Papercutninja

i don't know about that. The pump-action on a shotgun, isn't ALL that stiff. But the kid should be taught not to touch it anyway.

Trilby16

I know she's doing nothing illegal, given where she lives, but I just have a feeling she is an idiot. And she looks evil. Just my opinion, what do I know!

just saying

Hmm, actually Trilby I have the feeling that you're the idiot.

By a coincidence a number of years ago I worked in the same office as Gillibrand. She was somewhat quiet, always soft-spoken and was very respectful of everyone around her. Gillibrand was also an exceptionally hardworker who put in many late nights at the office (this was before she was married).

Little did I realize that we had a budding Annie Oakley in our midst.