WASHINGTON — Assault rifle manufacturers pushed back against Democrats’ assertions that they are partially to blame for a spate of recent U.S. mass shootings that has prompted new legislation to ban AR-15-style weapons.
“This is an ultra-deadly weapon engineered to kill enemy soldiers on the battlefield,” House Oversight Committee Chair Carolyn Maloney said during a hearing with officials from Daniel Defense and Sturm, Ruger & Co. “Yet, the gun industry has flooded our neighborhoods, our schools and even our churches and synagogues with these deadly weapons and has gotten rich doing it.”
The Wednesday hearing came as House Democrats delayed until August votes planned for this week on a bill banning the sale of assault weapons and companion legislation increasing funding for local police, according to a person familiar with the plans.
Assault rifles were used in the racist mass shooting in Buffalo, New York, that left 10 Black people dead and the Uvalde, Texas, elementary school shooting that left 19 children and two teachers dead.
The House Oversight Committee is investigating Daniel Defense and Sturm Ruger, as well as three other AR-15 manufacturers: Bushmaster, Sig Sauer and Smith & Wesson.
Daniel Defense made the AR-15-style rifle used in the Uvalde shooting. Bushmaster made the weapon used in the Buffalo shooting and the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in 2012.
These gun companies have made more than $1 billion selling military-style assault weapons to civilians over the last decade, according to a memo detailing the committee’s findings. The companies do not track or monitor deaths, injuries or crimes that result from using their products.
“Mass shootings were all but unheard of just a few decades ago. So, what changed? Not the firearms,” said Marty Daniel, chief executive officer of Daniel Defense. “I believe our nation’s response needs to focus not on the type of gun, but on the type of persons who are likely to commit mass shootings.”
James Comer, the committee’s top Republican, criticized Democrats for gun control efforts.
“Gun manufacturers do not cause violent crime, criminals cause violent crime,” Comer said.
The committee’s research into the gun companies show their advertisements draw a link between gun ownership and masculinity and emphasize connections with military and law enforcement. The companies have also marketed directly and indirectly to white supremacists, according to the memo.
