McCarthy Unleashes Sweeping Semi-Auto Ban
by Dave Workman
Senior Editor
Anti-gun Rep. Carolyn McCarthy (D-NY) has introduced legislation that many gun rights activists are calling the “most sweeping gun ban ever introduced in Congress.”
The announcement has sharpened concerns in the firearms community that with Democrats back in control on Capitol Hill, their pro-gun rhetoric of the election season will evaporate like water in a blast of rhetorical steam.
The ironically-numbered HR 1022—the model designation of an immensely popular Ruger semi-automatic rimfire rifle that, in some configurations, could be impacted by this bill—would not merely resurrect the 1994 Clinton ban, but expand it. What’s more, if adopted, this ban legislation would be permanent. The Clinton ban was written to sunset in September 2004, which it did.
McCarthy’s bill would ban semi-auto firearms that were re-designed or modified to comply with the cosmetic requirements of the Clinton legislation. It would not exempt popular firearms that had been exempted from the Clinton law, including the Ruger’s Mini-14, Mini-30 and Ranch Rifle, 60-year-old .30-caliber carbines and centerfire rifles with fixed magazines that hold more than 10 cartridges.
The legislation would also threaten every self-loading shotgun now used for sport hunting that have “characteristics that can function as a grip.” Language in the bill would ban semi-auto shotguns that have folding or telescoping stocks, a pistol grip, the ability to accept a detachable magazine or a fixed magazine capacity of more than 5 rounds.
Perhaps most alarming to owners of semi-auto rifles and shotguns is the provision, which outlaws “A semi-automatic rifle or shotgun originally designed for military or law enforcement use, or a firearm based on the design of such a firearm, that is not particularly suitable for sporting purposes, as determined by the Attorney General. In making the determination, there shall be a rebuttable presumption that a firearm procured for use by the United States military or any Federal law enforcement agency is not particularly suitable for sporting purposes, and a firearm shall not be determined to be particularly suitable for sporting purposes solely because the firearm is suitable for use in a sporting event.”
Once again, as in much gun control legislation, the term “sporting purpose” is prominent, but gun rights activists are quick to point out that there is no such language in the Second Amendment, and no such stipulation in most state constitutional right-to-bear-arms provisions.
Former President Bill Clinton has acknowledged repeatedly that it was passage of the semi-auto ban and the Brady Law that cost Democrats the majority in Congress in 1994. They regained control this year only after many freshman Democrats ran as pro-gunners. How many co-sponsors and how much support that McCarthy’s legislation garners will tell gunowners whether the Democrats now in office meant what they said.
The bill would, say some authorities, even affect the Ruger 10/22, especially if it has been fitted with a replaceable folding stock such as those from Ramline or Butler Creek. Indeed, McCarthy’s bill outlaws so-called “conversion kits.” Those are defined in the bill as “any part or combination of parts designed and intended for use in converting a firearm into a semi-automatic assault weapon, and any combination of parts from which a semi-automatic assault weapon can be assembled if the parts are in the possession or under the control of a person.” There is no exemption for the folding stocks for Ruger rimfires.
McCarthy’s bill most certainly would affect AR-15 rifles, the Springfield M1A and the M1 Garand, all of which are used by tens of thousands of competitive shooters. The legislation would ban the sale of these and similar rifles, and also make it illegal to “transfer” such firearms or their magazines. Anyone convicted under the language in the McCarthy ban would face fine and imprisonment of up to ten years.
Semi-auto owners are being urged to contact their representatives by phone at: 202-225-3121 and urging them to oppose McCarthy’s legislation. There is also an on-line petition to Congress—found at: www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/409898348?ltl=1172516169.
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