Sen. Lindsey Graham said Tuesday that "I will protect the Second Amendment, not repeal it" — as retired Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens suggested because it was "a relic of the 18th Century."
"Like every American, Justice Stevens is entitled to his opinion, but I am very glad he is now retired," the South Carolina Republican, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said in a statement.
"I have zero intention of following his counsel."
Stevens, 97, a conservative who retired in 2010, said Tuesday in an op-ed in The New York Times that Saturday's anti-gun violence "demonstrators should seek more effective and more lasting reform.
"They should demand a repeal of the Second Amendment," said Stevens, who was nominated in 1975 by President Gerald Ford.
Graham said Stevens' opinions "epitomize out-of-touch liberals who do not appreciate the important role the Second Amendment has played, and continues to play, in our nation."
Further, "statements like this should remind conservatives just how important Supreme Court nominations can be," the senator said, noting President Donald Trump's nomination of Justice Neil Gorsuch last year.
"It makes me appreciate President Trump's nomination and the Senate’s confirmation of Justice Gorsuch even more."
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