2016 VT Governor's race: on Gun Control


Phil Scott: Enforce existing gun laws; Vermont is no gun trafficker

Q: How would you address illegal gun trafficking in and through Vermont?

Phil Scott: Vermont is not a leading gun-exporter state when it comes to gun trafficking. According to the ATF, only 141 guns were traced back to Vermont in 2014. In contrast, nearly twice as many were traced to New Hampshire, nearly 11 times as many were traced to Massachusetts, and over 55 times as many were traced to New York. We do very well when it comes to gun trafficking compared to our neighboring states. I would continue to enforce existing gun laws on the books in Vermont that reduce gun trafficking, including provisions that allow the inspections of in-state gun dealers.

Source: LWV's Vote411.org on 2016 Vermont Gubernatorial Race Sep 19, 2016

Sue Minter: Universal background checks; ban assault weapons

Democrat Sue Minter's call for universal background checks for gun buyers and Republican Phil Scott's call for a halt to building wind turbines on Vermont's mountains are expected to be among the hottest issues in this fall's campaign for governor of Vermont.

Minter also maintains that Vermont is not immune to a national epidemic of gun violence and wants universal background checks on gun buyers and a ban on military-style assault weapons. Background checks died in the Legislature in 2015 after gun-rights activists packed a Statehouse hearing and lobbied against the change.

Scott maintains Vermont's gun laws are fine the way they are, and points to a low violent crime rate and the state's strong hunting tradition.

Source: Valley News on 2016 Vermont Gubernatorial debate Aug 28, 2016

Sue Minter: Gun violence has reached a crisis point; more gun safety

Strengthening Gun Safety: Gun violence in the U.S. has reached a crisis point and Vermont is not immune. Women are at particular risk: more than half of domestic violence homicides in Vermont involve a gun. In states that require a background check for private sales of handguns, 46 percent fewer women are shot to death by their intimate partners. I favor common sense approaches to strengthening gun safety while protecting the constitutional right of Vermonters to own guns and respecting our hunting heritage. Responsible gun ownership is one of our traditions and I will support requiring universal background checks for gun sales, including those that occur at gun shows, flea markets and private online sales (exempting family sales). The same standards that apply to federally registered firearms dealers should apply to all gun sales.
Source: 2016 Vermont gubernatorial campaign website SueMinter.com May 25, 2016

  • The above quotations are from 2016 Vermont Gubernatorial race: debates and news coverage.
  • Click here for definitions & background information on Gun Control.
  • Click here for other issues (main summary page).
Candidates and political leaders on Gun Control:

Retired Senate as of Jan. 2015:
GA:Chambliss(R)
IA:Harkin(D)
MI:Levin(D)
MT:Baucus(D)
NE:Johanns(R)
OK:Coburn(R)
SD:Johnson(D)
WV:Rockefeller(D)

Resigned from 113th House:
AL-1:Jo Bonner(R)
FL-19:Trey Radel(R)
LA-5:Rod Alexander(R)
MA-5:Ed Markey(D)
MO-9:Jo Ann Emerson(R)
NC-12:Melvin Watt(D)
SC-1:Tim Scott(R) 		Retired House to run for Senate or Governor:
AR-4:Tom Cotton(R)
GA-1:Jack Kingston(R)
GA-10:Paul Broun(R)
GA-11:Phil Gingrey(R)
HI-1:Colleen Hanabusa(D)
IA-1:Bruce Braley(D)
LA-6:Bill Cassidy(R)
ME-2:Mike Michaud(D)
MI-14:Gary Peters(D)
MT-0:Steve Daines(R)
OK-5:James Lankford(R)
PA-13:Allyson Schwartz(D)
TX-36:Steve Stockman(R)
WV-2:Shelley Capito(R) 		Retired House as of Jan. 2015:
AL-6:Spencer Bachus(R)
AR-2:Tim Griffin(R)
CA-11:George Miller(D)
CA-25:Howard McKeon(R)
CA-33:Henry Waxman(D)
CA-45:John Campbell(R)
IA-3:Tom Latham(R)
MN-6:Michele Bachmann(R)
NC-6:Howard Coble(R)
NC-7:Mike McIntyre(D)
NJ-3:Jon Runyan(R)
NY-4:Carolyn McCarthy(D)
NY-21:Bill Owens(D)
PA-6:Jim Gerlach(R)
UT-4:Jim Matheson(D)
VA-8:Jim Moran(D)
VA-10:Frank Wolf(R)
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Page last updated: Dec 09, 2018