Firearms Owners Against Crime
Institute for Legal, Legislative and Educational Action
Institute for Legal, Legislative and Educational Action
The two Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies shot in an ambush attack over the weekend are out of surgery and are thankfully expected to recover, according to Sheriff Alex Villanueva, and while the manhunt for the man who shot them at point blank range continues, Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden is using the attack to push his plan to ban so-called assault weapons and high-capacity magazines across the country.
According to surveillance footage released by the LA County Sheriff, the assailant in the attack used a handgun and only fired a few shots at the officer, so Biden’s call to ban “weapons of war” wouldn’t have prevented this attack. In fact, California has already banned so-called assault weapons and ammunition magazines that can hold more than ten rounds. Those laws had absolutely no impact on the ability of the shooter in Los Angeles to target deputies. Just like California’s laws, Biden’s own gun control plan cracks down on legal gun ownership in the hope that there’ll be some sort of trickle-down effect on criminals.
Of course, Biden’s “weapons of war” comment also ignores the fact that he’s actually calling for a ban on the most commonly sold rifles and magazines in the country, and doing so at a time when millions of Americans are purchasing firearms for the very first time. Biden’s plan to ban semi-automatic rifles and ammunition magazines would turn many of those new gun owners into criminals overnight if they didn’t hand over their firearms or pay a hefty fee to register them with the government.
Meanwhile, the media continues to provide cover for Biden’s gun control agenda through misleading “fact checks” like this one responding to an ad by the NRA that says Biden will take away our Second Amendment rights.
The voiceover says, “She’s got two kids and two jobs, but tonight she may not make it home. Every woman has a right to self-defense, a gun for protection.But Joe Biden would take her rights away.”
Biden has not said he wants to take away anyone’s Second Amendment right to own a gun, so this claim is false.
The ad also states, “For decades, Joe Biden has opposed your gun rights.”
This statement is misleading because Biden is not opposed to gun ownership. He claims he owns several weapons.
What nonsense. According to these fact-checkers, Joe Biden would actually have to announce “I’m taking away your Second Amendment rights” in order for it to be true that Biden would take our rights away. No candidate is stupid enough to do that, not even Biden. Instead, Biden’s own website declares that he believes the Second Amendment is “limited,” though he doesn’t go so far as to say what he thinks those limits are.
It’s also true and uncontroversial that Biden has opposed pro-Second Amendment legislation for decades. He was the primary author of the 1994 semi-auto ban and hasn’t backed any significant piece of pro-2A legislation since his vote in favor of the 1986 Firearms Owners Protection Act. Even then, Biden only voted for the bill after helping to water it down. It’s worth noting what he said back then, as reported by NBC News.
“During my 12 and a half years as a member of this body, I have never believed that additional gun control or federal registration of guns would reduce crime. I am convinced that a criminal who wants a firearm can get one through illegal, nontraceable, unregistered sources, with or without gun control,” he continued.
To say that the 2020 version of Joe Biden doesn’t agree with 1986’s Joe Biden is putting it mildly. Today’s Joe Biden has embraced gun control; from his ban on commonly-owned rifles and magazines to his push for red-flag laws, state-level gun licensing laws, an end to online sales of ammunition, universal background checks, and more.
Now that Biden has brought up his gun ban, it would be great if someone in the press would ask a critical question or two to the candidate on the issue. Instead, I suspect his supporters in the media will continue to argue that “there is no evidence, and subsequently no truth… that he wants to take away gun ownership rights,” even as some on the Left acknowledge that Biden’s agenda, if enacted, would reduce our Second Amendment rights into a privilege. The media is happy to provide cover for Biden on this issue. It’s up to gun owners to point out the truth about what Biden’s plans mean for our right to keep and bear arms.
Cam Edwards has covered the 2nd Amendment for more than 15 years as a broadcast and online journalist, as well as the co-author of "Heavy Lifting: Grow Up, Get a Job, Start a Family, and Other Manly Advice" with Jim Geraghty. He lives outside of Farmville, Virginia with his family. https://bearingarms.com/author/camedwards/
https://bearingarms.com/cam-e/2020/09/14/biden-gun-ban-la-deputies-shot/