Fox News host Tucker Carlson suggested over the weekend that laws regulating military-style semiautomatic rifles did not make sense because "there really is no such thing as assault weapons."
Earlier this month, Joseph Palumbo was forced to turn over customer records from his Albion Gun Shop in New York to local police after he mistakenly sold assault weapons that were banned by the NY SAFE ACT.
"They were looking for anybody who had purchased what we were told was a legal modified AR-15 because we have a pretty strict assault weapon ban in this state," Palumbo told Carlson on Saturday.
"We should be clear for our viewers, assault weapon is a made up term," Carlson replied. "And there really is no such thing as an assault weapon."
In fact, assault weapon is a legal term that has been used in the now-expired 1994 federal ban, and the bans in California and New York. Laws usually define an assault weapon as military-style semiautomatic rifles that are designed to kill humans efficiently. To meet the legal definition, the weapons usually must one or more key features: detachable magazines, forward hand grips, pistol grips, folding stocks or muzzle brakes.
However, conservatives often argue that assault weapon is a meaningless term because it is not precise.
(h/t: Media Matters)
