Rep. Tom Reed (R-Corning)

JAMESTOWN – Congressman Tom Reed’s (R-Corning, NY 23) campaign is responding to criticism from his opponent, who claimed Reed doesn’t support gun restrictions for suspected terrorists and as a result is compromising the safety of Americans.

On Wednesday candidate for Congress John Plumb (D-Lakewood) released a statement saying Reed does not support legislation that would prevent terror suspects on the federal No Fly List from purchasing a firearm. Plumb then said that Reed’s lack of support for the legislation undermines the safety of New Yorkers, adding that it continues a trend that he’s followed since being elected to congress.

On Thursday Reed’s Campaign responded to Plumb’s statements. Tom Reed for Congress spokeswoman Amy Hasenberg called Plumb’s statement outrageous and said that he is using offensive DC tactics to undermine Reed’s efforts to help protect Americans. Hasenberg also reiterated Reed’s statements from earlier in the week, saying that radical Islamic terror is the real enemy.

“Tom is at the forefront fighting for protections for the American people and he has been since he was elected into Congress,” said Hasenberg. “Any accusations that say otherwise are dishonest. Tom cares about all Americans. “Radical Islamic Terror is the real enemy here, but DC John Plumb chooses to take another play from the DC liberal insider playbook and use a national tragedy for personal political advancement.”

John Plumb

Hasenberg then accused Plumb of following the same campaign tactics used by the Democratic National Committee, which sent out a letter from minority Senate leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada) addressing the Orlando mass shooting while also asking for donations.

“This goes beyond poor taste, this behavior is horrendous and disrespectful towards the people that were unfairly taken from their families,” Hasenberg stated.

Plumb is challenging Reed for New York’s 23rd Congressional District seat in this year’s General Election. Over the past two decades he’s served as a submarine officer in the Navy and later as an official at the Department of Defense. Prior to his service in the military he was raised and graduated from high school in Randolph, NY (Cattaraugus County) in 1988.

Reed is an attorney and former mayor of Corning, NY who was elected to Congress in 2010 and has represented Chautauqua County since January 2013 when redistricting created the new 23^rd congressional district – which also includes several other counties in the southern tier, stretching all the way to Tompkins County in the finger lakes region.

REED, HOUSE APPROVE BI-PARTISAN TERRORISM PREVENTION LEGISLATION

Meanwhile, Congressman Reed, along with his fellow House members, voted 402-15 on a bipartisan package of three bills Thursday known as the Countering Terrorist Radicalization Act, aimed at preventing terrorists from radicalizing Americans to attack inside the United States.

Following the vote, Reed said the legislation will help prevent foreign terrorists from using propaganda to lure Americans into committing similar attacks like the one committed in Orlando.

“We care about keeping Americans safe, and in the wake of the tragedy in Orlando, we can and must do more to counter radical Islamic terrorism,” said Reed.

“It’s only right that we work to keep Americans safe without forcing them to give up constitutional freedoms,” he added, alluding to his unwillingness to support legislation that limits Second Amendment rights.

According to Reed’s office, the proposal increases the Department of Homeland Security’s efforts to counteract domestic and homegrown terrorist by expanding outreach in American communities and encouraging ordinary Americans to recognize and report suspicious activities. The bill also requires the department to reassess programs that aim to counter violent extremism in the U.S. and identify gaps in the programs and resources and report them to Congress. The third component of the legislation is to establish the Counterterrorism Advisory Board (CTAB) as the central Homeland Security counter-terrorism decision making body, allowing it to set the procedures for issuing terrorism alerts.

“Americans deserve to be safe on U.S. soil. We can’t let terror threats, either foreign or domestic, disrupt our way of life and this bill is the first step in taking proactive measures to defeat terrorism once and for all,” said Reed.

John Plumb

JAMESTOWN – The Democratic opponent of Congressman Tom Reed (R-Corning, NY 23) is speaking out against following Reed’s comments earlier this week in the wake of the Orlando shooting.

John Plumb (D-Lakewood), who’s running as a candidate for New York’s 23rd Congressional District in this year’s general election, claims that Reed is continuing a record of undermining the safety of New Yorkers, this time by not supporting legislation that would prevent known suspected terrorist from legally buying guns in the United States.

Plumb is citing a recent news article in which Reed again refused to support a plan sponsored by New York Republican Peter King that would close the current loophole that allows individuals on the government’s No Fly List – identified by Plumb as “suspected terrorists” – to legally buy guns in the U.S.

In a media release sent out by the Plumb campaign, the Navy Reserve Commander and self-described avid hunter said he has no interest taking away the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens.

“This common sense proposal does no such thing,” Plumb said. “This is about keeping weapons out of the hands of suspected terrorists – something even the NRA agrees should be one piece to a much larger response to fighting our enemies abroad and at home.”

Rep. Tom Reed (R-Corning)

Plumb added that Reed’s latest comments follows a trend that he alleges compromises the safety of Americans. Plum points out that in March of 2015, Reed broke with his fellow GOP members in New York and opposed a spending bill that would have funded the Department of Homeland Security. Then in December of 2015, he says Reed publicly opposed a Senate proposal that would have kept individuals on watch lists from purchasing weapons.

Congressman Reed has said he believes the best way to reduce mass shootings in the United States is by focusing on eliminating terrorist threats from abroad and also identifying and helping those with mental illness at home, rather than focusing on legislation restricting a U.S. citizen’s Second Amendment rights. He said any gun restrictions placed on people on the no fly list – some of whom may have been falsely identified as terror suspects – would go against their right to due process under the constitution.

• LISTEN TO REED’S RECENT STATEMENTS REGARDING THE ORLANDO MASS SHOOTING