Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., made Sonia Sotomayor's confirmation hearings a local issue today.

"My constituents in Oklahoma understand, as do most Americans, that the right to own guns hangs in the balance," Coburn told the nominee in his second round of questioning, referring to Sotomayor's role in the appellate Second Amendment case Maloney v. Cuomo. "It may very well hang in the balance with your ascendancy to the Supreme Court. For us, one wrong vote on what we consider -- regardless of what you consider -- but what we consider a fundamental right could gut the holding of [District of Columbia v.] Heller."

Sotomayor concluded her response: "I can assure your constituents that I have a completely open mind on this question. I do not close my mind to the fact and the understanding that there were developments after the Supreme Court's rulings on incorporation that will apply to this question or be considered. I have a completely open mind."

Coburn, who is up for re-election in 2010, was similarly focused on core GOP issues -- most notably gun rights and abortion -- Wednesday, as well. Today, though, he went a step further by explicitly mentioning his constituents.

The National Rifle Association has been active in the days leading up to and during the confirmation hearings. "As the Senate considers the nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor, Americans have been watching to see whether this nominee -- if confirmed -- would respect the Second Amendment or side with those who have declared war on the rights of America's 80 million gun owners," NRA Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre wrote in a statement posted on the organization's Web site Wednesday.

This statement follows the NRA's letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee last week expressing concern with the ruling of Sotomayor's 2nd Circuit panel in Maloney.

Conservative interest groups said before the hearings that red-state Democrats should be concerned with Sotomayor's ruling in Maloney. For their part, Democrats have maintained that Sotomayor and the panel were simply applying precedent the high court set in Heller.

In addition, Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., has highlighted the endorsement another gun rights group, the American Hunters and Shooters Association, has given to Sotomayor.