Last week, Kevin argued that an assault-weapons ban would not have prevented the Tucson shooting. On this front, Sen. Richard Lugar (R., Ind.) breaks from the Williamson camp — he told Bloomberg News over the weekend that the ban should be reinstated:
AL HUNT: OK. Let me turn to a domestic issue, the terrible tragedy in Tucson. That assailant was rejected by the Army, kicked out of community college for mental health reasons, yet he could walk in and buy an over-the-counter Glock 19 with a 30-bullet magazine. Now, you supported the federal assault weapons ban, which expired in 2004. Should that be reinstated to make sure someone can’t do something like that?
LUGAR: I believe it should be, but I recognize the fact that the politics domestically in our country with regard to this are on a different track altogether. As a matter of fact, it appears that ammunition has been purchased from stores all over the country subsequent to this by many Americans feeling that somehow the Congress might take action that would somehow limit the amount of ammunition or the types of ammunition people could have.
As Politico notes, “Lugar is the first GOP senator to call for increased gun control following the Tucson tragedy.” For a little background, see John R. Lott Jr., who wrote about the ban for NRO back in 2004, as did Dave Kopel.