Congresswoman-elect Boebert, who runs gun-friendly grill, asks about carrying pistol on Hill, report

The Republican congresswoman-elect who runs a gun-themed restaurant in Rifle, Colo., is asking for permission to carry a firearm while on Capitol Hill grounds.

The office of Lauren Boebert confirmed the inquiry to Capitol Police, according to the Associated Press.

Boebert, who runs Shooters Grill, defeated five-term incumbent GOP Rep. Scott Tipton by closely aligning herself to President Trump, then easily won her general election race on Nov. 3. 

Her office confirmed a conversation with police officials about rules, which sources told the Associated Press was about gun rules and occurred when incoming House members were in Washington, D.C., last week for orientation. However, the office has not issued a statement from Boebert.

"This was a private discussion and inquiry about what the rules are, and as a result the Congresswoman-Elect won't be going on the record," Boebert aide Laura Carno told the wire service.

The practice is allowed for lawmakers, with some limitations, under decades-old congressional regulations. 

Police said several years ago that there is no standing requirement that lawmakers notify the department when they carry a firearm in the Capitol.

A 1967 regulation says no federal or District of Columbia laws restricting firearms "shall prohibit any Member of Congress from maintaining firearms within the confines of his office" or "from transporting within Capitol grounds firearms unloaded and securely wrapped."

GOP Rep. Thomas Massie, chairman of the House Second Amendment Caucus, supports letting lawmakers carry weapons, citing the 2017 shooting spree in which Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.) and four other people were hurt as they practiced baseball in nearby Alexandria, Va.