Republicans Defend Assault Rifles Because There Are Pesky Varmints That Need Killing

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

AR-15-style assault rifles are designed to kill human beings, and their rise in popularity coinciding with a rise in mass shootings is probably not a coincidence. Republicans want to ensure Americans are able to obtain these killing machines as easily as possible, even in the wake of a string of mass shootings in which they were used to kill 10 in Buffalo, 21 in Uvalde, and, on Wednesday night, four in Tulsa. The shooter in Oklahoma bought his AR-15-style rifle just hours before using it to shoot up a medical facility.

It hasn’t been easy for Republicans to mount anything resembling a rational defense of AR-15-style rifles as they’ve been used to kill so many Americans. Most have simply gestured toward the Second Amendment (which does not, contrary to what the GOP says, enshrine the right to own an arsenal of lethal weapons without restrictions), but Rep. Ken Buck (R-Colo.) on Wednesday dared to make the argument that while yes, AR-15-style assault rifles are the weapon of choice for mass shooters, they are indispensable because some people use them to kill varmints.

“In rural Colorado, an AR-15 is a gun of choice for killing raccoons before they get to our chickens,” he said during a House Judiciary Committee hearing on gun violence. “It is a gun of choice for killing, uh, a fox. It is a gun that you control predators on your ranch, your farm, your property. The idea that somehow, we are going to deny access — I think there are 20 million AR-15s in circulation in this country — it makes absolutely no sense.”

Link to tweet

Buck somehow isn’t the only Republican lawmaker to argue that the United States can’t restrict the purchase of high-powered assault rifles because some people use them for pest control. Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) told Vice News that he, too, believes AR-15s are necessary to exterminate small animals.

https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/republicans-defend-assault-rifles-because-202850902.html

So many varmints out there that you need a thirty-round magazine.

[Eliot Rosewater]

1. And if our President refers only to "congress" as to will anything get done and he and

others dont POINT OUT that it is NOT Congress, it is REPUBS, then this November we will lose many MANY votes.

[COL Mustard]

2. Can't they just

Throw pineapples or rotten tomatoes at their pesky varmints? I know some vermin are afraid of such things.

[Timewas]

3. Living here

On our ranch/farm we deal with some of this now and then, foxes, raccoons and such can be dealt with easily with a small caliber rifle like an old style 22, no need for the power involved in an AR15 or larger for anything that small. In fact I have many times done so with a BB gun.. A few months back we had to go after a cougar that was killing our livestock and that did cal for something a little more powerful, but I would never even think of using an AR, they are not good hunting rifles, they are accurate ok but lack any real stopping power..

[Walleye]

5. My grandfather had a long barrel nine shot 22 revolver

It was quite accurate and could easily be used for varmint control. I know he had a shotgun somewhere but we were never allowed to fire that. I thought that 22 pistol was one of the most sensible guns I’d ever seen.

[Timewas]

8. You bet

Works as good as anything if you can shoot....

[maddiemom]

10. Take into consideration that varmints such as raccoons and foxes are small....even smaller than

primary school-age children. These shooters obviously are very poor marksman.

[TreasonousBastard]

4. They don't need the big magazines because of the number...

of varmints, but the number of misses.

[Timewas]

7. Yes n/t

[Ferrets are Cool]

6. I am not a violent person, but he makes me want to punch him in the face with the butt of an AR-15

Oh well.

[TreasonousBastard]

9. Me too. And it's getting worse.