Boebert responds to criticism of her gun storage in Zoom background

Freshman Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) responded to criticism of her gun storage in her Zoom background during a House Natural Resources Committee meeting. 

During the committee’s organizing meeting held over Zoom, the Republican appeared to have several guns including rifles and a handgun propped up behind her on a bookshelf.

Her background was immediately spotted with journalists, lawmakers and Twitter users pointing it out on the platform. 

“I always thought my dirty dishes piled up and accumulating bacteria were the most dangerous thing in a Zoom background…#SafeStorage,” Rep. Katie Porter (D-Calif.) said in response to Boebert’s background. 

I always thought my dirty dishes piled up and accumulating bacteria were the most dangerous thing in a Zoom background… #SafeStorage pic.twitter.com/uveXvGfafu

— Rep. Katie Porter (@RepKatiePorter) February 18, 2021

As the Robinhood hearing starts, the real action — apparently — is at the Natural Resources organizing meeting, where Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) is roasting Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) for the gun shrine she’s constructed as a Zoom background. pic.twitter.com/I5GdIVsM1B

— Matt Fuller (@MEPFuller) February 18, 2021

“Who says this is storage? These are ready for use,” Boebert later posted on Twitter on Thursday in response to the reaction. 

Who says this is storage? These are ready for use. https://t.co/y9fxckjcGl

— Lauren Boebert (@laurenboebert) February 18, 2021

Boebert has faced backlash in the past regarding her stance on firearms after she released an ad last month stating “I will carry my firearm in D.C. and in Congress.” 

Boebert has recently been approved for a concealed carry permit in Washington, D.C., and is not the only Republican representative who is carrying in the House. 

Guns have become a controversial topic in the House following the violence at the Capitol on Jan. 6. 

Last month, GOP Rep. Andy Harris (Md.) set off the metal detectors in Congress with a concealed gun, and Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-N.C.) admitted to being armed during the Capitol riot. However, it is unclear if he carried a gun onto the House floor. 

After Harris set off the metal detector, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) objected to House members carrying firearms in Congress, claiming Harris attempted to sneak the gun onto the floor. She later expressed that she and other colleagues don’t “feel safe around other members of Congress.”