Fact-checking Alex Mooney on whether Jim Justice supports banning sporting rifles?

Rep. Alex Mooney, R-W.Va., is challenging Gov. Jim Justice for the Republican nomination for a U.S. Senate seat in 2024. Mooney is criticizing the governor by posting a "Phony Jim Justice" website.

Mooney’s website makes a number of claims, one of which is that Justice "supports banning sporting rifles for law-abiding citizens."

We reached out to both candidates’ offices. Justice’s campaign did not respond to inquiries, but Mooney’s campaign did.

Brittany Yanick, a spokesperson for Mooney’s campaign, cited statements Justice made during a briefing on May 31, 2022, about increasing the minimum age to buy an assault weapon to 21.

In the briefing Justice said, "We absolutely know without any question, to me, at least, that why in the world is an 18-year-old buying an assault weapon? A 21-year-old, I’d welcome it."

Whatever Justice’s personal feelings on this question are, he did not sign such a bill into law.

Meanwhile, Justice also said in the briefing that he didn’t support an assault weapons ban and that citizens may need assault weapons to protect their homes.

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In addition, Mooney’s site used the term "sporting rifle," which is a broader term than the actual phrase Justice used — "assault weapon" — and which would be even more objectionable to gun-rights advocates.

Subsequently, in March 2023, Justice did sign into law a bill that eased gun laws. It allows West Virginians who already have a concealed-carry permit to carry concealed weapons on the state’s college campuses beginning July 1, 2024.

Meanwhile, Justice’s campaign website says: "Governor Justice believes it is a God-given right that West Virginians can protect themselves. … More gun control and confiscation are not the answers. In the Senate, Jim Justice will fight to preserve our rights and work to keep guns out of the hands of criminals and the mentally ill. We need more resources for law enforcement, mental health services, and prisons to ensure irredeemable, violent criminals stay behind bars."

Mooney said Justice "supports banning sporting rifles for law-abiding citizens."

This statement is misleading, cherry-picking and exaggerating a comment Justice made in a 2022 briefing. In the briefing, Justice expressed doubts that 18-year-olds should be able to buy assault weapons, suggesting the minimum age should be raised to 21.

This has not become law during his tenure, and even if it had, Mooney’s phrasing makes Justice’s statement sound more far-reaching than it is. "Sporting rifle" is a broader category than "assault weapon."

In reality, Justice signed a bill expanding concealed-carry rights on the state’s college campuses, and his campaign website says he is against "more gun control and confiscation."

We rate the statement False.