Onorato Hits Corbett Again On Gun Issues

We're a couple of hours away from the last debate in the gubernatorial election season and Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato, the Democratic nominee, really wants to talk about how he differs from his Republican opponent, state Attorney General Tom Corbett, on the issue of gun regulation.

Their positions are pretty easy to boil down to the basics:  Corbett doesn't want to do anything new or different while Onorato said there are sensible changes to be made on subjects like the "Florida loophole," which allows Pennsylvania residents to obtain a permit from the Sunshine State's Department of Agriculture to carry a concealed weapon permit here even if they've been turned down for a permit by law enforcement in this state.

Onorato raised the issue this morning at City Hall, where he received the endorsement of CeaseFirePA, a non-profit group that sells itself as "Working to prevent gun violence in your community."  The group endorsed Onorato, noting that Corbett was the only candidate -- Republican or Democrat -- running for governor this year who refused to respond to its request for information.  Onorato noted that Corbett, speaking Saturday during a debate in Pittsburgh, declared that there is no Florida loophole, claiming that state has stringent checks on permit requests.

"You can't fix a problem if you don't realize there is a problem," said Onorato, noting that elected officials and law enforcement agencies from across the state have advocated to close the Florida loophole.

Onorato was joined by Mayor Nutter, who claimed Corbett was more interested in playing to a constituency of people opposed to any gun regulation than in sound public policy. "Tom Corbett appears to be owned, lock, stock and gun barrel by the NRA," Nutter concluded.

Corbett, in a campaign pamphlet that circulated last month on his "record of fighting for gun owners" made special mention of the fact that his office has "tripled the number of concealed carry reciprocity agreements with other states."  The pamphlet touted his score of an "A+ rating from the National Rifle Association."