Congresswoman Does Not Realize the 'Assault Magazines' She Wants to Ban Are Reusable
Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Colo.) is the chief co-sponsor, with Rep. Carolyn McCarthy (D-N.Y.), of the High Capacity Ammunition Feeding Device Act, which would ban the sale or transfer of magazines that can hold more than 10 rounds. Upon reintroducing the bill in January, she said banning what she calls "assault magazines" would "go a long way toward making our country safe." If DeGette seems overly optimistic about the potential impact of her legislation, especially given the fact that many millions of "high-capacity ammunition feeding devices" would remain in circulation, perhaps that's because she does not realize magazines are reusable. At a Denver Post forum on gun control yesterday, DeGette explained why she thinks her bill would be effective:
What's the efficacy of banning these magazine clips? I will tell you these are ammunition, they're bullets, so the people who have those now, they're going to shoot them. And so if you ban them in the future, the number of these high-capacity magazines is going to decrease dramatically over time because the bullets will have been shot and there won't be any more available.
The Denver Post notes that the audience "chuckled" after DeGette's remarks (which you can watch in the video below, starting at minute 31) and that Larimer County Sheriff Justin Smith, "responding as the audience was laughing, urged people who hadn't shot a gun to 'get to the facts,'" adding, "Let's be educated as we make this decision.'" DeGette's office says she "misspoke"—just like McCarthy did when she described a barrel shroud, one of the assault-weapony firearm features she wants to ban, as "the shoulder thing that goes up."
[Thanks to Mike Krause at the Independence Institute for the tip.]