The Democratic Party’s top priority when it comes to gun regulation is a ban on so-called assault weapons. Semiautomatic rifles, such as the AR-15, are included in this group, which the left labels “weapons of war.” Recently, a Democrat in Congress urged his party to pass such a prohibition.
Democratic California representative Eric Swalwell made a call for a “[b]an assault weapons” and a “[b]uy them ALL back” in a tweet on August 28. The government, he continued, should prioritize protecting children over protecting those who kill them.
Ban assault weapons. Buy them ALL back. Choose our kids over their killers.
— Rep. Eric Swalwell (@RepSwalwell) August 28, 2023
The congressman’s message wasn’t well received. Brandon Herrera, a popular YouTuber and 2A activist, said, “Ban politicians. Buy them all back (because they HAVE been bought).” Another social media user pointed out that the government isn’t able to “buy back what it never owned.”
Others have called for the lawmaker’s expulsion from Congress, claiming he is a traitor for violating his oath to the Constitution.
When Vice President Kamala Harris said that President Joe Biden planned to outlaw the guns if reelected, she came under fire from the National Rifle Association. The President and Vice President asserted that he had defeated the gun rights group in the 1990s by passing an assault weapons prohibition. The NRA shot back, saying the plan backfired and that now millions more people had access to firearms.
As supporters of the Second Amendment have pointed out for a long time, the Constitution states that the rights of Americans “shall not be infringed.”
The question of whether or not to outlaw the firearms, however, is moot. The Democratic Party just does not have the requisite number of votes to make that happen. The House of Representatives is now run by Republicans, and the Democrats do not have a majority in the Senate large enough to prevent filibustering. Furthermore, the government cannot possibly buy back all the firearms.
