Like most Republicans, far-right freshman Congressman Madison Cawthorn of North Carolina insists that any measure for common sense gun-law reform is an infringement on the Second Amendment, which he believes is for the purpose of ensuring citizens can rebel against the government.
Cawthorn is also convinced that American citizens with guns could overpower the U.S. Military, which was allocated a $714 billion budget last year.
As evidence to support this belief, Cawthorn pointed to the Viet Cong, the communist guerilla militia that fought against the United States during the Vietnam War.
Cawthorn was attempting to argue that assault weapons, which are designed for the express purpose of killing the maximum amount of people in as little time as possible, are necessary to defend against the United States Government—the same government that signs Cawthorn's paychecks.
Watch below.
In an interview on right-wing disinformation outlet Newsmax, Cawthorn said:
"The Second Amendment is not written for sporting. The Second Amendment is so that if the tyrannical government ever wants to rise up, we can stop them. If anybody ever wants to say, 'oh, well you know what, citizens with a few small arms fire would never be able to stop the federal government'—I absolutely disagree. Ask the Viet Cong how they handled the Marines and the Army in Vietnam."
Long considered one of the United States' most shameful wars, the Vietnam War saw mass casualties on both sides. Though the U.S. ultimately lost the war, its effects devastated Vietnam and its people for decades to come.
In addition to backing from the North Vietnam Military, the Viet Cong also had backing from communist allies like China and the Soviet Union—they weren't average citizens.
People responded with history lessons.
People didn't know where to begin with how absurd the statement was.
Cawthorn hasn't addressed the controversy yet.
