House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi missed the mark in her interpretation of the Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act, voted into law by Republicans last week. That legislation, Pelosi declared on Twitter, comes with some unwanted invitations.
Inviting violent criminals to carry concealed weapons doesn’t save lives
— Nancy Pelosi (@NancyPelosi) December 6, 2017
Inviting domestic abusers to carry concealed weapons doesn’t save lives
Inviting convicted stalkers to carry concealed weapons doesn’t save lives
Yet the @HouseGOP just voted to do exactly that #StopCCR
The Washington Post Fact Checker gave Pelosi three Pinocchios for the misleading tweet. Contrary to the picture Pelosi tried to paint, federal law already prohibits violent criminals from obtaining guns.
The House Minority Leader was supposedly relying on information she obtained from the gun control group Everytown for Gun Safety, which declared that the bill “forces" states to allow concealed carry by many people who have never been subjected to a background check to carry throughout the country.
"There is a specific provision in H.R. 38 that excludes any individual who is prohibited by federal law from ‘possessing, transporting, shipping, or receiving a firearm.’” Rep. Richard Hudson (R-NC), the bill's sponsor, explained in defense.
"Pelosi’s tweet inspired such anger because responsible gun owners believe their rights are being curtailed, even if they follow the concealed-carry rules — while violent criminals who want to have a gun are not going to be bothered with following such rules in the first place," the Fact Checker added.
Pelosi earned the third Pinocchio, however, thanks to her last line.
“We wavered between Two and Three Pinocchios but ultimately settled on Three because her last line — 'the @House GOP just voted to do exactly that' — is so over the top and exaggerated,” the Fact Checker explained.
Democrats have been racking up plenty of Pinocchios lately - many of them thanks to their outrage over the GOP tax legislation. Senators like Kamala Harris (CA) and Bob Casey (PA) said that the tax plan would raise taxes on most middle class families. The problem, which was identified by the WaPo Fact Checkers, was that these eager Democrats misread the initial reports from the Joint Economic Committee, which explained that 8 million households that earn up to $86,100 will see a $794 tax increase.
That misinterpretation earned Democrats four Pinocchios.
Pelosi's office stands by her initial tweet about the Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act.
"The bill is terrible,” they noted.