(J. Scott Applewhite/AP)

So much for Mark Kelly’s Second Amendment rights. Can you imagine the uproar if this had happened to a tea partier?

(Reuters) – An Arizona gun store owner has canceled the sale of an assault rifle to the husband of former congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, after discovering that he made the purchase to highlight the need for gun control.

Mark Kelly got a refund after buying an AR-15 style weapon. The store owner didn’t appreciate the semi-automatic weapon being used as a prop for their anti-violence/gun safety cause.

Here’s what his Facebook message said:

While I support and respect Mark Kelly’s 2nd Amendment rights to purchase, possess, and use firearms in a safe and responsible manner, his recent statements to the media made it clear that his intent in purchasing the … rifle from us was for reasons other than for his personal use.”

In light of this fact, I determined that it was in my company’s best interest to terminate this transaction prior to his returning to my store.

So if a gun dealer doesn’t approve of a political reason for legally purchasing a rifle, he can refuse service. And because he runs a private business, it’s constitutional, albeit ironic. And hypocritical.

He’s going to donate the rifle to a police raffle and give the amount of money he would have gotten from selling the rifle to Kelly to a child gun safety program.