Members of Maine’s congressional delegation could soon be thrust into another gun control debate.
Several bills have been introduced to ban the “bump stock,” a rifle accessory used by the Las Vegas gunman who killed at least 59 people at country music concert last weekend. Some members of the delegation appear open to restricting use of this device, which can transform some semiautomatic rifles into weapons that are more like machine guns.
A bump stock can be legally purchased in most places in the U.S. for somewhere between $100 and $300. It can make semiautomatic rifles fire almost as quickly as fully automatic weapons, which have been banned for most Americans since 1986.
That means a semiautomatic AR-15 that typically fires only as fast as someone can pull a trigger, can be legally outfitted to resemble a machine gun.
In the above video, an Alabama gun dealer who is authorized to sell machine guns to law enforcement agencies first demonstrates a semi-automatic weapon, one shot at a time, and then a fully automatic weapon.
That’s not much different from the below video demonstration of a semiautomatic that’s been outfitted with a bump stock.
In the wake of the Las Vegas shootings, bills have been submitted in the House and Senate to ban the accessories. Unlike previous gun control measures, the ban appears to be getting some bipartisan support.
“There’s no good reason that we should allow them,” says Democratic U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree of Maine’s 1st District, a co-sponsor of one of the proposals. “while I think it wouldn’t solve all of the concerns people have, if there’s a bipartisan effort to do this, if we can move forward on this, perhaps it will give people the sense that we can at least have a dialogue about what to do about gun violence in our country.”
Independent U.S. Sen. Angus King was not available for an interview, but in a written statement says that he doesn’t believe it’s possible to “legislate our way out of all gun violence.” But he says it seems sensible to restrict a device that can turn semiautomatics into something close to a banned weapon.
U.S. Rep. Bruce Poliquin of Maine’s 2nd District and U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, both Republicans, were also not available for interviews. Collins’ spokeswoman says the senator is deeply troubled that such an accessory can be purchased to massively increase the firepower of a rifle. Poliquin’s spokesman says the congressman is still studying the use of bump stocks.
It appears the same is true of the NRA, which donated nearly $10,000 to Poliquin’s re-election effort last year. The group, which holds significant influence in all gun control matters, is signaling that it’s open to a review of the bump stock issue.
“I certainly understand why Congress would want to look at this given what happened. I don’t think anybody ever anticipated somebody would use these types of devices in this way,” said David Trahan, director of the Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine, a group that works closely with the NRA on gun-related bills in the Maine Legislature.
“We don’t have any issues with a debate in Congress and figuring out a better policy maybe, figuring out what we can do to make our communities safer,” he said. “This was horrific for everybody involved.”
The NRA released a statement Thursday saying that bump stocks should be regulated. That’s a big change in position, even in the wake of other recent mass shootings.
After last year’s massacre at an Orlando night club, the NRA pressured Congress to block a bill that would have halted gun sales to people on a terrorism watchlist. But the bumpstock debate may not be that big of an issue for even many of the most passionate gun rights advocates.
In the 2nd YouTube video above, Paul Glasco of Louisiana, who reviews guns for the “Legally Armed America” channel, suggests that there’s not much practical use for bump stocks, particularly for true marksmen.
“This is why these things are not consistent and not preferred,” he said. “I’m even going to put my right leg rearward to try and brace myself. And you’re still going to see my torso get pushed backwards … Again, only a total jackass would use one of these.”
Authorities say that 12 of the rifles recovered from Stephen Paddock’s Las Vegas hotel room were equipped with bump stocks.
