House passes new assault weapons ban


The House of Representatives on Friday voted 217-213, largely along party lines, to pass the Assault Weapons Ban of 2022.
Five Democrats — Reps. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas), Jared Golden (D-Maine), Vicente Gonzalez (D-Texas), Kurt Schrader (D-Ore.) and Ron Kind (D-Wis.) — voted against the bill, while two Republicans — Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) and Chris Jacobs (R-N.Y.) — voted in favor of it. The Hill notes that if "the two Republicans had voted with their party," they might have "tied the vote 215-215, preventing Democrats from getting to the 216-vote threshold they needed to pass the bill."
The legislation would make it illegal to import, sell, manufacture, transfer, or possess semiautomatic assault weapons or "large capacity ammunition feeding devices." Some firearms will be grandfathered in, but person-to-person sales of those weapons will be restricted. Former President Bill Clinton signed a similar ban in 1994, but it expired 10 years later and has not been renewed.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
President Biden urged the Senate to "move quickly to get this bill to my desk," but the ban is unlikely to receive the 60 Senate votes it would need to overcome the filibuster.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Grayson Quay was the weekend editor at TheWeek.com. His writing has also been published in National Review, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Modern Age, The American Conservative, The Spectator World, and other outlets. Grayson earned his M.A. from Georgetown University in 2019.
-
AI scammer fakes Rubio messages to top officials
Speed Read The unknown individual mimicked Rubio in voice and text messages sent to multiple government officials
-
SCOTUS greenlights Trump's federal firings
speed read The Trump administration can conduct mass federal firings without Congress' permission, the Supreme Court ruled
-
New tariffs set on 14 trading partners
Speed Read A new slate of tariffs will begin August 1 on imports from Japan, South Korea, Thailand and more
-
Elon Musk launching 'America Party'
Speed Read The tech mogul promised to form a new political party if Trump's megabill passed Congress
-
Judge blocks Trump's asylum ban at US border
Speed Read The president violated federal law by shutting down the US-Mexico border to asylum seekers, said the ruling
-
Thai court suspends prime minister over leaked call
Speed Read Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra has been suspended, pending an ethics investigation
-
Senate passes GOP megabill after Alaska side deal
The pivotal yes vote came from Sen. Lisa Murkowski, whose support was secured following negotiated side deals for her home state Alaska
-
Trump sues LA over immigration policies
Speed Read He is suing over the city's sanctuary law, claiming it prevents local law enforcement from cooperating with federal immigration authorities