Political Quotes

Tina Smith: “But the thing that fascinates me is how can one argue that the rifle should be destroyed on the one hand and, if they…”

On the recordJune 27, 1996
But the thing that fascinates me is how can one argue that the rifle should be destroyed on the one hand and, if they are destroyed, then the value is zero; yet, on the other hand complain that they are being sold? If I have a $10,000 porcelain artifact that an antique dealer would buy from me for $10,000 and I pick it up and I throw it to the floor and break it, I do not have anything of value. I think that is really what this debate is about. The taxpayers bought these rifles at one point for our military, and now we are hearing complaints when the taxpayers have the opportunity to buy them again.
Said by
Tina Smith
Democratic · Minnesota
Source
govinfo.gov

Editor's note · Context

Discussing the debate over the destruction and sale of M-1 rifles.

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