GOP Raffles Gun in Giffords’s District

Arizona Democrats are calling on Republicans to cancel a fundraising raffle in Rep. Gabrielle Giffords’s district where the winner takes home a Glock handgun. Giffords was nearly killed on Jan. 8 by the same weapon in a shooting rampage that killed six and wounded 13 others. “This is something that pulls a scab off of a wound,” said the county’s Democratic chairman, Jeff Rogers. In its Aug. 26 newsletter, the Pima County Republican Party advertised the fundraiser, saying, “Help Pima GOP get out the vote and maybe help yourself to a new Glock .45.” The raffle winner also will receive three 12-round magazines, adjustable grips, and a case. Republican leaders defended the fundraiser, saying they hold it every year.