The Villages—Democratic senatorial candidates and Rep. Val Demings arrived at a campaign event in The Villages, Florida, where she was greeted by several videographers, including conservative journalist and Republican congressional candidate Laura Loomer, who question Demings over her support for “Red Flag” laws and having her firearm stolen.
Just as Rep. Demings, who rode in on her motorcycle with her husband, Orlando Mayor Jerry Demings, Loomer question her about having her firearm stolen while she was the City of Orlando’s chief of police, calling her an “irresponsible gun owner.”
"Why are you trying to punish law-abiding gun owners with your false claims of trying to take guns out of the hands of criminals when you yourself were censured as the chief of police in Orlando because you improperly failed to secured your firearm,” asked Loomer before saying, “You are an irresponsible gun owner.”
Loomer continued pressing Demings to answer, but Demings refused to answer.
Demings did however speak about the ongoing gun violence and even invited Loomer to join her in bringing attention to the recent shootings.
In 2009, after an internal- affairs investigation, then-Chief Val Demings received a written censure” for not properly securing her agency-issued firearm in her vehicle.
According to the Orlando Sentinel, Demings had her “duffel bag” stolen out of her SUV. The bag contained her service baton, ammunition, handcuffs, and her 9 mm firearm.
Demings, who is running for the U.S. Senate against sitting Senator Marco Rubio, has been critical of Sen. Rubio's support for gun rights and has called on both Republican and Democratic senators to pass existing gun control legislation, legislation that included red flag measures.
Back in 2018, Demings gave a passionate speech on the floor of the House pushing for more restrictive gun measures after the Parkland school shooting in Florida.
"Every American should have the right to go to school, to go to church, to go to a mall, to go to a movie theater or a night club without being brutally murdered by someone with a gun"- Rep. Val Demings (2018)
The entire exchange between Loomer and Rep. Demings can be found in a video Loomer posted on Youtube.
