California Senator Reintroduces Assault Weapon Ban

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Senator Dianne Feinstein re-introduced an assault weapon ban bill to Congress last week. The bill, co-sponsored by 22 other Democratic Senators had no Republican support. The bill would ban the sale and possession of military style assault weapons. 

With two major mass shootings in the last two months, Feinstein says that such a ban is long overdue. 

“We’re introducing an updated Assault Weapons Ban for one reason: so that after every mass shooting with a military-style assault weapon, the American people will know that a tool to reduce these massacres is sitting in the Senate, ready for debate and a vote.

The California senator first authored the original assault weapons ban that passed in 1994, but after Congress did not reauthorized it 2004, the bill's provisions lapsed. 

“This bill won’t stop every mass shooting, but it will begin removing these weapons of war from our streets. The first Assault Weapons Ban was just starting to show an effect when the NRA stymied its reauthorization in 2004. Yes, it will be a long process to reduce the massive supply of these assault weapons in our country, but we’ve got to start somewhere.

Over 200 different military-style assault rifles, including the AR-15 which has been used by several mass shooters would be banned by the bill. Any assault weapon that could use a detachable magazine, or other military characteristics would also become illegal under the new legislation. Bump stocks, a device that enables a semi-automatic weapon to fire at the same rate as automatics were also included in the list of items that would be made illegal.

Feinstein likely knows there's little hope of her bill moving through the Republican-controlled Senate, but that's not stopping her from trying. 

“To those who say now isn’t the time, they’re right—we should have extended the original ban 13 years ago, before hundreds more Americans were murdered with these weapons of war. To my colleagues in Congress, I say do your job."


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