Article Summary –
A mass shooting at a Trump campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, resulted in one death and injuries to former President Trump and others, with an AR-15-style rifle recovered by law enforcement. The article discusses the history and impact of assault weapons bans in the U.S., highlighting the expired 1994 ban and the subsequent rise in mass shootings, as well as ongoing political efforts and opposition regarding new legislation. Despite broad public support for an assault weapons ban, political divisions persist, with Democrats advocating for restrictions and Republicans, influenced by the NRA, largely opposing them.
A mass shooting at a Trump campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13 resulted in one death and injuries to former President Donald Trump and others. Law enforcement officials recovered an AR-15-style semiautomatic weapon.
In 1994, President Bill Clinton signed a law banning assault weapons and high-capacity magazines for 10 years. Since the law’s expiration in 2004, the U.S. has seen a rise in mass shootings, including shootings at schools.
Notable shootings involving assault weapons occurred in Newtown (2012), Orlando (2016), Las Vegas (2017), Sutherland Springs (2017), Pittsburgh (2018), El Paso (2019), and Uvalde (2022).
“It literally can pulverize bones, it can shatter your liver and it can provide this blast effect,” Johns Hopkins trauma surgeon Joseph Sakran told the Washington Post in a story on AR-15 weapons’ force. “We often sanitize what is happening.”
President Joe Biden and Congressional Democrats have pushed for a new ban on semiautomatic guns and high-capacity magazines. The National Rifle Association and its Republican allies have blocked these efforts.
In 2022, the Democratic-led U.S. House passed an assault weapons ban by a 217-213 vote, but it failed in the Senate.
Pennsylvania Democratic Reps. Boyle, Cartwright, Dean, Evans, Houlahan, Scanlon, and Wild, along with Republican Rep. Fitzpatrick, voted in favor. Republican Reps. Joyce, Kelly, Meuser, Perry, Reschenthaler, Smucker, and Thompson voted against.
Democratic Sens. Bob Casey and John Fetterman co-sponsored the Senate version of the ban.
Polls have shown broad support for an assault weapons ban. A May 2023 survey by Everytown for Gun Safety found 65% of likely voters support a ban, while 32% oppose it.
Trump supported an assault weapons ban in his 2000 book “The America We Deserve,” media reported in 2019. However, after receiving millions from the NRA, Trump reversed his stance.
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