Angie Craig: “Machine guns: Fully automatic--the kind that is already banned. You can acquire them by permit from BATF to put in your…”

“Machine guns: Fully automatic--the kind that is already banned. You can acquire them by permit from BATF to put in your collections, but you can't go to the street and buy them unless you buy them illegally and you buy them in the black market. You don't buy them at gun shows. That is the reality of what we are talking about. Where lies the burden of proof to renew or re-up a law that has restricted the ability of law-abiding citizens, created another tripwire, and denied them what is a legitimate ownership right in this country? Less than 2 percent. I believe those are fully verifiable statistics when we are examining this. That is why the House and many others have said, no, let's not go there. Let this law expire. It may have been necessary at the time largely for political purposes only. Many of us opposed it then, saying it wouldn't work and it wasn't necessary. It didn't work and it isn't necessary. That is the reality of what we are doing. Let us take this law from the books. Let us make sure we go after the criminal who misuses the gun--who uses a gun in the commission of a crime. That is where we get law enforcement. That is how we protect law-abiding citizens in this country and we don't thereby deny them their constitutional right.”