Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) on Sunday called out her fellow Republican lawmakers for their “silence” on gun violence and “extreme” stances on abortion.
“Every mass shooting, there’s just silence. Prayers are offered, Easter baskets are offered, but no real solutions,” the lawmaker said on “Fox News Sunday” in the wake of a string of mass shootings across the country.
Mace suggested implementing stronger background checks and other measures to protect against gun violence, but stopped short of calling for gun control beyond tightening background checks for gun purchasers.
“Republicans can no longer be silent on this issue,” she said. “And it’s not about the Second Amendment. There are plenty of things that we can be doing besides offering prayers and silence. Some sort of Amber Alert, for example, to let the community know there’s been a shooting.”
“Strengthening our background checks is something that the vast majority of Americans support. Hardening our schools, churches and synagogues so that there is deterrence.”
“Every time there’s a mass shooting ― and they’re increasing every year ― every week, we don’t say anything. We want to bury our heads in the sand and hope that it goes away. But guess what? It’s not going away,” she added.
Noting that she represents a purple district, Mace continued: “We’ve not learned anything from the midterm elections if we’re going to sit here on our hands silently, not offering any type of solution to reduce gun violence in our country.”
“And it’s not about gun control,” she added.
On abortion, Mace said some of the stances Republicans have taken ― particularly in cases involving rape and incest or where the mother’s life is at risk ― are “so extreme” that independent voters and those in the middle of the political spectrum “cannot support us.”
“If we’re gonna ban abortion, what are we doing to make sure women have access to birth control?” she said.
Though Mace describes herself as “pro-life,” she argued that there are many avenues for Republicans to “protect life and not alienate the independent voter,” like improving access to contraception, improving adoption services and the foster care system and strengthening OB-GYN access and care.
Since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June, Republican-led state legislatures across the country have banned or severely restricted access to abortions. In 13 states, most abortions are now banned, with no exceptions for rape or incest.
Mace, a self-described fiscal and constitutional conservative, defeated a Donald Trump-backed primary challenger last year. She has been critical of the former president’s role in inciting the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection, though she did not vote to impeach him for it. She did, however, vote to certify President Joe Biden’s 2020 election win.
She has also expressed disapproval with members of the extremist faction of her party, such as Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.).