Iowa lawmaker apologizes for 'joke' about gun bill

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) - An Iowa lawmaker has apologized for a comment made about a gun bill that was construed as insensitive toward people with mental health issues.

The comment from Rep. Jeff Kaufmann, R-Wilton, was recorded Thursday night as he talked with his peers on the House floor. The House speaker pro tem referred to a measure that would allow Iowans to carry weapons in public without authorization by a sheriff or a background check as "the give-a-handgun-to-a-schizophrenic bill."

Kaufmann later told the Des Moines Register that the remark was a "poorly worded joke" and hopes that it will prompt discussions about mental health and public safety.

Brian Kaskie of the Iowa Coalition on Mental Health and Aging says the comments shows how uninformed state lawmakers are about mental health issues.