Former congressman Beto O’Rourke’s vow to take AR-15s from gun owners appears to represent a stark reversal from his failed Senate run last year.
At Thursday night’s Democratic presidential debate, O’Rourke was pressed by ABC’s “World News Tonight” anchor David Muir about whether he was proposing “taking away” guns from lawful gun owners. He said he was, specifically weapons “designed to kill people on a battlefield.”
“When we see that being used against children and in Odessa, I met the mother of a 15-year-old girl who was shot by an AR-15. And that mother watched her bleed to death over the course of an hour because so many other people were shot by that AR-15 in Odessa and Midland. There weren’t enough ambulances to get to them in time,” he said. O’Rourke’s hometown of El Paso also was the scene of a recent mass shooting.
He then vowed, “Hell yes, we’re going to take your AR-15, your AK-47. We’re not going to allow it to be used against our fellow Americans anymore!”
His campaign has even produced a shirt with the slogan.
Hell yes, we're going to take your AR-15.
Buy your shirt now: https://t.co/kEJxoLvfH5 pic.twitter.com/KKpAKX4IL8
— Beto O'Rourke (@BetoORourke) September 13, 2019
Israel to Sue NYT Over Sickening Report Accusing IDF of Canine Rape: ‘Hideous and Distorted’
173 House Democrats vote against resolution honoring police amid rising attacks
Final Walz fraud report rips ‘culture of tolerance’ as Minnesota taxpayers face billions in alleged losses
Iran Seizes Ship Loaded with Weapons, Steers It Toward Territorial Waters: Report
Fox News True Crime Newsletter: Buster Murdaugh seen for first time since dad’s murder conviction overturned
Video shows undercover cops shooting man threatening shoppers with fake gun in ‘justified’ defense: officials
Intense Footage: Police Officer with No Protective Gear Sprints Into Burning House and Saves Entire Family
Court Overturns Former Attorney Alex Murdaugh’s Double Murder Convictions
Dem Senate hopeful’s ‘physician’ campaign pitch under fire after license records reveal key gaps
Massie’s ex-girlfriend alleges he arranged her Capitol Hill job, then offered $5,000 to drop termination suit
Veterans group backing Iowa Democrat’s Senate bid is bankrolled by Schumer-aligned PAC
Trump struggles to shake ballroom backlash: ‘We don’t have the money’
Democrats’ midterm push clouded by infighting over party keeping 2024 autopsy under wraps
New 9/11 Museum exhibit aims to connect younger Americans to the attacks through powerful artifacts
Finland has ‘exactly the same position’ as Trump on NATO failures but pleads not to let Russia, China divide the West
However, O’Rourke had a much different stance when he was running for Senate. During an interview on “The Chad Hasty Show” in April 2018, the host asked: “I own an AR-15. A lot of our listeners out there own AR-15s. Why should they not have one?”
“To be clear, they should have them,” O’Rourke responded. “If you purchased that AR-15, if you own it, keep it. Continue to use it responsibly.”
He added later in the same interview: “If you own a gun, keep that gun. Nobody wants to take it away from you — at least I don’t want to do that.”
Since O’Rourke’s run for Senate, there have been several mass shootings in the U.S., including in El Paso, which he has said has changed his view on gun control.
Source: Fox News
