MADISON, Wis. — Claims in an attack ad from the gun control advocacy group Everytown for Gun Safety that U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson voted against police funding are partially true, but do not accurately depict the Republican’s position.
The ad cites two votes specifically by Johnson — an appropriations bill from 2018, and the American Rescue Plan Act that provided pandemic-era aid. Both bills were sprawling, including many provisions like police funding, which Johnson ultimately voted against.
In a recent call with reporters, he said those votes do not accurately depict his position on police funding.
“It’s rare, I would say never happens, where you’re voting simply on a bill to fund the police,” Johnson said. “If it were that case, I’d be voting for all of them.”
For example, Johnson said in a statement regarding his vote against ARPA that “this is not covid relief – it is a massive debt burden that further mortgages our children’s future.”
The ad also claims that Johnson has voted to “flood our streets with guns” by making it easier for violent criminals and domestic abusers to access firearms.
The notion that Johnson voted to “flood our streets with guns” is subjective, but the ad back the claim with two accurate votes Johnson cast in the Senate.
In the wake of the Sandy Hook shooting, the Senate debated a series of gun control measures including an assault weapons ban — which Johnson voted against — and a measure to allow concealed-carry permit holders to carry across state lines — which Johnson voted for.
Earlier this year, in the wake of the Uvalde shooting, the Senate also debated gun control measures, including the “boyfriend loophole.” Under previous law, spouses who were convicted of domestic abuse would be entered into a national background check system — closing the boyfriend loophole would have that extend to dating partners, not just spouses.
Johnson voted against that bill as a whole, saying it had “provisions that ignore constitutional rights.”
How we got here: The sources used in this Reality Check
The ad was paid for by Everytown for Gun Safety and can be seen here.
Johnson’s vote on the 2018 appropriations bill is recorded here.
Johnson’s vote on the American Rescue Plan Act is recorded here.
Johnson explained his vote on police funding in a call to reporters, News 3 Now’s initial reporting of that can be found here.
Johnson’s statement on the American Rescue Plan Act was given to WSAW in Wausau and can be found here.
The votes related to the Sandy Hook gun control legislation were found on two separate amendments. Here is the assault weapons ban amendment and Johnson’s vote. Here is the concealed-carry amendment and Johnson’s vote.
Here is a link to the gun control legislation that came in the wake of the Uvalde shooting, with Johnson’s vote recorded here. His statement can be found on his website here.
COPYRIGHT 2022 BY CHANNEL 3000. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. THIS MATERIAL MAY NOT BE PUBLISHED, BROADCAST, REWRITTEN OR REDISTRIBUTED.
