WATCH: Adam Kinzinger Wants Gun Purchase Age Raised, Is Open To Bans



Steph Bazzle reports on social issues and religion for Hill…
Adam Kinzinger has spent a lot of time in the past few years standing up to Trumpism and right-wing extremism, and now he seems to be setting his spine against the most extreme gun lobby views as well. In interviews Sunday morning, he affirmed that he believes raising the age to buy a semi-automatic weapon is a good move, and even said he’d be open to bans, before softening that position to suggest other actions short of an outright ban.

Kinzinger appeared on ABC‘s This Week, where he said that raising the minimum age for gun purchases is a ‘no-brainer,’ citing the young ages of shooters in multiple mass shootings, including the latest school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, the shooting in Buffalo, and the school shooting in Parkland, Florida in 2018.
Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger tells @jonkarl that raising minimum age for gun purchases to 21 “is a no brainer" to him.
“If you look at the Parkland shooting, you look at Buffalo, you look at this shooting, these are people under the age of 21.” https://t.co/Ndo3NsrFp7 pic.twitter.com/mBpxDBiyJF
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) May 29, 2022
What’s more, Kinzinger says that he feels like sentiments in his party may have shifted with this latest horror, at least enough to budge on small legislative changes like a minimum age.
However, appearing on CNN, Kinzinger suggested that he himself would be willing to go even farther. Though he’s opposed a ban on semi-automatic weapons recently, he says that he’s now open to the idea.
Adam Kinzinger: "I have opposed a ban [on AR-15s] fairly recently. I think I'm open to a ban now." pic.twitter.com/gF54DPW5Z6
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 29, 2022
“It’s gonna depend on what it looks like, because there’s a lot of nuances…but I’m getting to a point where I have to wonder. Maybe someone, to own one, you need an extra license, maybe you need extra training, and so the question is, is it a ban versus additional certification…The problem is that those who support the Second Amendment, like me, we have to be coming to the table with ways to mitigate 18-year-olds buying these guns and walking into schools. My side’s not doing that. My side’s not coming forward with reasonable ways to defend an amendment that we think is very important, and so I’m looking at this and going, fine. If people are going to put forth solutions, about maybe certifying who can buy an assault weapon, I’m certainly open to that.”
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Steph Bazzle reports on social issues and religion for Hill Reporter. She focuses on stories that speak to everyone's right to practice what they believe in and receive the support of their communities and government officials. You can reach her at Steph@HillReporter.com
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