# Reid Admits No Support For "Assault Weapons" Ban

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reid-admits-no-support-for-assault-weapons-ban/653402>\
**Category:** Great Debates\
**Created:** [March 19, 2013, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reid-admits-no-support-for-assault-weapons-ban/653402 "2013-03-19T22:41:00Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Showing post:** 219

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**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\
**Post date:** [March 23, 2013, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/reid-admits-no-support-for-assault-weapons-ban/653402/219 "2013-03-23T18:34:12Z")

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> [@Bricker](#):
>
> That in the past fifteen years, you saw absolutely no sign, here or elsewhere, that Democrats and their pundits/proxies were signalling concern about guns was not a valid reason to vote against Democrats, since they were’t going to push gun control.

I think Democrats are happiest when gun control is not talked about at all. But that’s entirely different from making affirmative statements that they would not seek additional gun control measures, however minor or however downplayed those measures might be. What I think they did try to impress on people is that they weren’t looking to overturn the 2nd amendment or “take everyone’s guns away”, which does seem to be a mistaken meme among a large segment of the right-wing electorate.

Here’s John Kerry in 2004, during his presidential run, saying he wanted to extend the assault weapon ban, which is the key item in your OP:

> [@](#):
>
> [Federal ban on assault weapons expires](http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/washington/2004-09-12-weapons-ban_x.htm)
> 
> John Kerry, the Democratic presidential nominee, said President Bush had failed tests of character and leadership. But the National Rifle Association lauded the demise of what it called a “misguided law, which had no effect on the actions of criminals, but penalized law-abiding citizens.”
> 
> Bush said in the 2000 campaign that he would sign an extension of the 10-year ban on the semiautomatic weapons. However, he did not press Congress to send him such a bill, and its Republican leaders never did.
> 
> “Why didn’t you ask, Mr. President?” Kerry asked, surrounded by police officers and gun violence victims at a community center here. “Why didn’t you fight for it?”
> 
> The answer, Kerry said, is that Bush caved to the NRA. “It is a test of character,” he said. “In a secret deal, he chose his powerful friends in the gun lobby over the police officers and families that he promised to protect.” He said Bush has made it easier for terrorists to do their jobs and harder for police to do theirs.

Even though Bush said he’d sign a bill if it came to him, Kerry is making a concerted effort to position himself to the left of Bush on the issue. He would actively work to extend the ban that got you started on this thread.

So, if you want to claim that Democrats make an effort to counter the ridiculous claims made about them by the right, then sure. They often talk about supporting the 2nd amendment. They like photo ops of them shooting guns. But they wouldn’t have to do that if they weren’t the target of the powerful gun lobby. The same lobby that [rated Kerry “F”](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Kerry_presidential_campaign,_2004#Gun_control) on gun issues. Not “B-” or “C”, but “F”.

So, if you want to wage a war on misleading memes, you’ll find better hunting on the right on this issue. It’s a target rich environment over there.

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