Beto Signals Openness to Confiscating All Semi-Automatic Firearms | Eastern North Carolina Now

Publisher's note: This informational nugget was sent to me by Ben Shapiro, who represents the Daily Wire, and since this is one of the most topical news events, it should be published on BCN.

The author of this post is Ryan Saavedra.

    Democrat presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke signaled he was open to the idea of banning all semi-automatic firearms on Thursday after he gave a speech in Colorado highlighting his gun confiscation plan.

    Evan Todd, who survived the Columbine tragedy after being shot, confronted O'Rourke as he spoke in Aurora after arriving approximately an hour late to the event.

    Todd, a pro-Second Amendment supporter who sought to discover just how far O'Rourke was willing to take his extreme gun control policies, told O'Rourke: "I understand that you want to implement a mandatory buyback for AR-15s and AK-47s. None of my classmates were murdered with those weapons, 50% of mass murders don't happen with those weapons."

    "Don't you think it's time to get rid of all semi-auto firearms?" Todd asked.

    O'Rourke, who at one point said that if he was elected that he would be removing firearms from people's "homes," responded by saying that he wanted input from Todd about what types of weapons he thinks should be banned.

    Several minutes later, after the event ended and O'Rourke moved inside to answer questions from reporters, a reporter asked O'Rourke if he would be open to adding "additional classes" of firearms to his ban and confiscation plan.

    "Yeah, I want to listen to him," O'Rourke responded. "If there's a way to improve what we have proposed, I want to make sure that we are reflecting that."

• Tonight, a man shot at Columbine HS asked @BetoORourke why he isn't calling for a ban on ALL semiautomatic weapons. Beto offered this to reporters: "If there's a way to improve what we've proposed, I want to make sure we're reflecting that." pic.twitter.com/VIR8eWMz5h
• - Ryan Haarer (@RyanHaarer) September 20, 2019

    Banning all semi-automatic firearms would include all semi-automatic rifles, shotguns, and handguns - which easily constitutes the majority of the estimated 393 million firearms that Americans own.

    Associated Press political reporter Nick Riccardi tweeted: "During a gaggle Beto tells reporters he will talk to the Columbine survivor about expanding the range of guns he'd confiscate. Says he's open to anything."

• During a gaggle Beto tells reporters he will talk to the Columbine survivor about expanding the range of guns he'd confiscate. Says he's open to anything.
• - Nick Riccardi (@NickRiccardi) September 20, 2019

    Local reporters for NBC News and CBS News affiliates also reported that O'Rourke signaled during the event that he was open to expanding his gun confiscation plan.

    Todd told The Daily Wire that after he asked his question, he spoke to dozens of O'Rourke's supporters and that in every exchange he had with them he mentioned, "but he never answered my question," to which many of O'Rourke's supporters responded to by saying, "Yeah, well, we have to start somewhere."

    "I wanted to get an honest answer from Beto of where he truly draws the line," Todd continued, adding, "but it if I were to answer my own question the answer would be, hell no!"

    As recently as last year, O'Rourke said that he supported people owning and using AR-15s during his failed Texas Senate campaign.

• Robert Francis O'Rourke running for office last year in the state of Texas: "To be clear they should have [AR-15s], if you purchased that AR-15, if you own it, keep it, continue to use it responsibly."
• Beto is a fraud that will say anything to get electedpic.twitter.com/kckco2EIih
• - Ryan Saavedra (@RealSaavedra) September 13, 2019

    Free Beacon gun expert Stephen Gutowski joked about O'Rourke: "Maybe he really is a pro-gun plant intentionally confirming everything gun rights activists have been warning about for years? Beto was at 2.8% in the Real Clear Politics average before the post-debate polls dropped. All the attention his gun confiscation comments got him has moved him up to 3%. So, it hasn't worked as a campaign ploy so far."

• Beto was at 2.8% in the Real Clear Politics average before the post-debate polls dropped. All the attention his gun confiscation comments got him has moved him up to 3%. So, it hasn't worked as a campaign ploy so far. https://t.co/8RrgXgSIIO
• - Stephen Gutowski (@StephenGutowski) September 20, 2019

    "Look, there are two groups of people behind these [gun control] bills," Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) told Fox News this week. "There's a group of people who I think in good faith honestly believe that further curtailing our Second Amendment rights will enhance public safety," Kennedy said. "But there's another group that just hates the Second Amendment, and I want to thank Congressman Beto O'Rourke for being honest - I mean, his honesty was refreshing."

    "I want to thank the Congressman for being honest because I don't agree with him. Beto's copy of the Bill of Rights goes from one to three," Kennedy continued. "Mine includes the Second Amendment. But there are a whole host of people here in Washington, D.C. - not all of my Democratic friends, but many of my Democratic friends - they don't believe in the Second Amendment. They would be happy to confiscate America's guns," he explained. "And if you don't believe that, then you probably also still believe in Big Foot. I mean, it's a fact and everybody up here knows it."