After seven mass shootings in just seven days, Americans across the country are reviving calls for long-sought gun law reform in hopes of curbing the level of gun violence unique to the United States.
Most recently, America saw a shooter in Boulder, Colorado kill 10 people in a grocery store, among them a police officer. The shooter reportedly used an AR-15 style pistol.
In response to the shooting, Vice President Kamala Harris echoed President Joe Biden's calls to ban assault weapons in the United States:
"This is not about getting rid of the Second Amendment. It's simply about saying we need reasonable gun safety laws. There is no reason why we have assault weapons on the streets of a civil society. They are weapons of war. They are designed to kill a lot of people quickly."
Republicans, who take on the unenviable task of justifying the need for mass shootings in order for Americans to be free, pounced on her choice of words, claiming that assault weapons aren't "weapons of war" at all.
White House correspondent for the conservative Fox News channel, John Roberts, echoed this claim on the network.
He said:
"These are not weapons of war. These are not assault rifles, these are semiautomatic weapons. They just look different."
Former FBI special agent Asha Rangappa begged to differ, and soon pushed back against his claim.
More on how the AR-556 is very different than a regular pistol https://t.co/oUQPYrzeDW
— Asha Rangappa (@AshaRangappa_) March 25, 2021
She attached information regarding the similarities of the AR-15, and the weapon used by the shooter—the Ruger AR-556.
People agreed with Rangappa's overall sentiment that assault weapons shouldn't be readily available in the United Staets.
Others called on Roberts and Fox News to stop dismissing the severity of the problem.
The shooter appeared in court for the first time today.
