Senator's stance raises ire of NRA

WASHINGTON — To hear Sen. Kirsten E. Gillibrand's critics tell the story, she went from darling to detractor of the gun lobby overnight, once Gov. David A. Paterson plucked her from a conservative U.S. House seat to be New York's junior senator in January.

But as sharp as Mrs. Gillibrand's turn has been — she won a 100 percent vote score from the National Rifle Association last year but now touts gun control and gives up any chance of an NRA endorsement again — her credentials on firearms issues are more nuanced than pro-gun or anti-gun advocates might have voters believe.

She defies clear definition as she prepares for a Democratic primary next year where guns are likely to be an issue, acknowledging some adjusted thinking but resisting the flip-flopper caricature.

The senator's critics cite her perfect score last year from the NRA, which endorsed her for re-election to the House. But the NRA's political action committee did not contribute money to her campaign; two years earlier it not only endorsed, but gave $5,500 to, her opponent, Rep. John E. Sweeney, R-Clifton Park. She has never been a member of the NRA, a spokeswoman said, although she has spoken of her own gun ownership and about learning hunting skills from her family, where her mother, she has said, is the best shot.

While the NRA was singing her praises last year, the sportsmen's club in her own home county was endorsing her opponent, Alexander F. "Sandy" Treadwell. The Columbia County Sportsmen's Federation noted his pro-gun answers on an NRA survey and added, "Sandy Treadwell has our support because he will oppose any efforts to restrict our Constitutional rights."

Since taking the Senate seat, Mrs. Gillibrand has faced one key gun vote — and come down firmly against the NRA.

The senator opposed a measure to overturn the District of Columbia's ban on handguns, even though she had taken the exact opposite position in the House — there, signing a brief to the U.S. Supreme Court calling for the law's reversal as a first-term congresswoman.

That sealed Mrs. Gillibrand's ouster from the NRA's goodwill.

"I think it's pretty clear that Sen. Gillibrand has chosen politics over principle," said Andrew A. Arulanandam, a spokesman for the NRA.

Although Mrs. Gillibrand has said she supports hunters' rights and hasn't changed all that much, "her voting record has, and that is the most important barometer," he said.

Mrs. Gillibrand's spokeswoman, Bethany Lesser, said in an e-mail message, "Senator Gillibrand is a strong supporter of the Second Amendment, but has always opposed gun violence and in the House supported measures that keep guns out of the hands of criminals and other dangerous people. While gun violence was not an issue in her rural Congressional district, Senator Gillibrand now represents the entire state, including areas affected by gun violence."

If Mrs. Gillibrand needs to worry about her stance on guns, the danger lies not in a general election — where a Republican could be expected to be more sympathetic to the NRA — but in a primary, where a pro-gun Democrat is at an immediate disadvantage in New York.

And like Mrs. Gillibrand's record against illegal immigration, the approach she may be seeking on guns is to avoid the issue if possible. In January, in the days after Mrs. Gillibrand was appointed, half of Democrats in a Quinnipiac University poll said they would be less likely to vote for her next year because of her pro-NRA stance on guns.

Quinnipiac has not asked that question in any polls since, but she lost ground in the college's latest poll in late June and was four points behind Rep. Carolyn B. Maloney, D-Manhattan, her most likely primary opponent.

Democratic critics are not about to let Mrs. Gillibrand shake the pro-gun image. Mrs. Maloney has spoken disparagingly of the senator's "evolving" position on the issue and suggested she lacks character for changing her stance.

Mrs. Maloney's campaign spokesman, Paul Blank, said changing positions because the facts have changed is different from switching when one's perception of the politics shifts. Gun control is bound to be a major issue in a Democratic primary, he said.

"You can flip-flop all you want but no one knows where you stand," Mr. Blank said.

But in defending Mrs. Gillibrand, Sen. Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., has noted that he had to change his position on farm subsidies when he became a senator — an acknowledgment that he had a new upstate constituency to consider.

Mrs. Gillibrand's shift is not unprecedented in Congress, the NRA reported. When Bill Clinton came to the presidency in 1993, the new administration "strong-armed a lot of pro-gun" lawmakers into accepting gun limits, including the Brady Bill that required a waiting period and instant criminal background checks for gun buyers, he said.

"A lot of them paid the ultimate price, politically," Mr. Arulanandam said.