Rep. Todd Rokita (R-IN) and fifteen other Republicans sent a letter to the General Services Administration (GSA) urging the government agency to re-evaluate a $700 billion contract with Citibank due to the financial giant’s anti-gun policies.
Rokita said in a statement on Thursday:
This flagrant disregard for American citizens and their God-given Second Amendment rights cannot be tolerated. Those who seek to undermine those God-given rights do not deserve taxpayer dollars and should be denied federal contracts. Congress has sworn to uphold the Constitution, and it is paramount that we stand united for the American people and their right to bear arms.
Reps. Thomas Massie (R-KY), Paul Gosar (R-AZ), Matt Gaetz (R-FL), and Louie Gohmert (R-TX) are a few of the prominent Republican lawmakers included on the letter urging the GSA to re-evaluate their contract with Citibank.
Citibank used a March 22 “Commercial Firearms Policy” to announce a requirement that gun stores quit selling “high-capacity” magazines to do business with the bank.
Rokita said in a statement to the Daily Caller, “This flagrant disregard for American citizens and their God-given Second Amendment rights cannot be tolerated.”
Rokita hopes to win Indiana Republican Senate primary and then defeat Sen. Joe Donelly (D-IN) in the November Senate 2018 midterm race.
The House Republicans wrote in their letter to the GSA:
Because of Citibank’s new guidelines targeting customers wishing to exercise their legal Second Amendment rights, we urge you to cancel Citibank’s participation in the SmartPay 3 contract, and award it to a company that does not unfairly restrict a customer’s constitutional rights.
Breitbart News reported that Visa refused to cave in to media pressure to force the company to cut ties with semiautomatic rifle manufacturers.
“We do not believe Visa should be in the position of setting restrictions on the sale of lawful goods and services,” Visa argued.