Four members of the Dallas chapter of the pro-gun control group Moms Demand Action were meeting inside the Blue Mesa Grill on Saturday when 40 members of the anti-gun control group Open Carry Texas arrived outside the restaurant armed.

Moms Demand Action posted a picture (right) of the Open Carry Texas members on its Facebook page and wrote:

WHAT ARE THESE MEN DOING? No, they're not military defending our country or police responding to a mass shooting. They're members of Open Carry Texas and they showed up earlier today to protest a membership meeting being held by four members of Moms Demand Action inside a restaurant in Dallas. These men, armed with semi-automatic rifles, terrified customers and passersby.

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A spokeswoman for Moms Demand Action told ThinkProgress.org that the Open Carry Texas folks pulled “up in the parking lot and start[ed] getting guns out of their trunks.”

However, the manager of the Blue Mesa Grill did not call 911 as he feared a confrontation might occur.

After two hours of staking out the parking lot, the members of Open Carry Texas went to a nearby Hooters restaurant.



The Moms Demand Action spokeswoman called the armed Open Carry Texas members “bullies” who “disagree with our goal of changing America’s gun laws and policies to protect our children and families.”

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After scaring restaurant customers and trying to intimidate the four unarmed women, Open Carry Texas posted on its Facebook page:

Hey Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, here's your chance to get your ideas out in public. The president of Open Carry Texas, CJ Grisham, is issuing an open invite and challenge to MDA President Shannon Watts to debate the issue of "gun sense" (gun control) versus gun rights (supporting the constitution). Since we are issuing the challenge, Shannon may pick anywhere in the State of Texas to hold the event and OCT will pay for the venue.

We will also accept the Texas Chapter President of MDA if Shannon doesn't feel intelligent or confident enough to handle an open debate. OCT will NOT be open carry at the event so MDA can feel safe and secure in its ignorance and false sense of safety. Shannon may email her response CJ directly from her official email to cj@opencarrytexas.org. The ball is in your court.

RawStory.com reports that Moms Demand Action created an Internet meme of the “gun bullies” with a picture taken on Saturday.

UPDATE: Moms Demand Action founder Shannon Watts says she gets death threats from pro-gun advocates daily. She also says Open Carry Texas found out about the meeting via an Open Carry Texas member who pretended to be a Moms Demand Action member on the group's Facebook page.

Sources: RawStory.com, Facebook, ThinkProgress.org

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