Biden Talks Assault Weapons Ban, Red Flag Laws After Uvalde Shooting

President Joe Biden spoke about his gun control agenda last night. Here’s what he wants:

To reinstate the assault weapons ban.

It was initially passed in 1994 and expired in 2004. The ban prohibited the manufacture, transfer, and possession of semiautomatic assault weapons—specifying which guns were banned. Loopholes allowed many guns to be purchased legally. This time around, the ban could be stricter with a total ban on rifles like the AR-15.

To strengthen background checks.

In the situations where weapons were legally acquired and then used for mass shootings, background checks were passed. Mass shooters usually don’t have a criminal record, making further background checks ineffective.

To add federal red-flag laws.

Red-flag laws allow the government to strip Americans of their right to bear arms without proper investigation or due process. In a hyper-partisan government, these measures could easily be abused.

Additionally, even states with red flag laws still fail to stop these mass shootings. California and New York are recent examples.

Repeal immunity for gun manufacturers.

Critics claim that suing gun manufacturers is a moral assertion that gun manufacturers are responsible for what people do with guns. More murders are committed with knives than with rifles—will knife manufacturers also be held accountable? Currently, it’s very difficult to sue gun manufacturers for gun violence.

And to raise the age to purchase semiautomatic rifles from 18-21.

Meanwhile, common-sense security for schools has been completely ignored. Bulletproof glass, metal detectors, enhanced door lock systems, secure points of entry, and school marshals.

Big picture.

These measures will do little to accomplish Biden’s goal of preventing mass shootings and gun violence. At the same time, they will give the federal government more power to regulate the second amendment.