Former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords will join Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz for a town hall meeting promoting new gun control laws on Saturday in a Republican-held legislative district at the western edge of the Twin Cities metro.
The Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party is hosting the event in Waconia weeks after negotiations between Walz and legislative Republicans on a special legislative session on gun control and school safety reached an impasse.
Initially, the governor had said he would call lawmakers back to the Capitol “one way or another” following the August shooting at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis that killed two young children and injured 21.
But as talks between Walz and GOP leaders over several weeks failed to yield a deal, the governor started to shift his tone and said he would instead start hosting town hall meetings on gun violence.
“I need to get an agreement on this. If we’re going to hold a special session on safety of our children and safety of our streets … we need to talk about guns,” Walz told reporters at the Capitol on Oct. 8 as negotiations stalled. “(Otherwise) calling a special session is going to be a waste of money and a waste of time.”
Giffords is a former Democratic member of Congress from Arizona who was shot while campaigning in 2011. She’s since become an advocate for preventing gun violence.
No bills can reach the governor’s desk without bipartisan support in Minnesota’s narrowly divided Legislature, where the House is tied 67-67, and there is a one-seat DFL majority in the Senate. And some rural DFLers are hesitant to back gun control bills.
Saturday’s town hall will take place in the Senate district represented by Sen. Julia Coleman, R-Waconia, and the House district of Rep. Jim Nash, R-Waconia, which falls within the borders of Coleman’s Senate district.
A DFL spokesperson said the party invited both Nash and Coleman. Neither plan to attend the event.
Coleman received the invitation but could not attend due to a scheduling conflict, according to a Senate Republican caucus spokesperson. Nash did not respond to a request for comment.
The town hall starts 3 p.m. at Waconia High School. Walz and Giffords will be joined by other elected officials, gun safety organizations, doctors, educators, survivors, and community members.
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