NRA slams Democrat-led bill that would restrict magazine capacity: 'Blatantly violates' US Constitution

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FIRST ON FOX: The National Rifle Association (NRA) on Thursday slammed a Democrat-led bill that would restrict magazine capacity and outlaw firearms with a magazine capacity of more than 10 rounds.

"This legislation blatantly violates the U.S. Constitution and U.S. Supreme Court rulings by banning the very types of firearms and magazines most often utilized by Americans for defending themselves and their families," Randy Kozuch, executive director of the NRA’s Institute for Legislative Action, told Fox News Digital in a statement. 

"This bill unjustly and improperly places the full burden of the law on law-abiding residents, while doing nothing to take guns out of the hands of dangerous criminals. The NRA opposes this legislation and will fight to protect the constitutional freedoms of all law-abiding Americans," he said.

Sens. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., and Angus King, I-Maine, introduced the Gas-Operated Semi-Automatic Firearms Exclusion (GOSAFE) Act a month after a gunman opened fire in Lewiston, Maine, and killed nearly 20 people. 

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GOSAFE targets how weapons operate versus how they look. Lawmakers propose strict regulations for gas-operated semi-automatic weapons, creating a prohibited firearms list, preventing illegal modifications, mandating approval for future designs and preventing self-manufactured ghost guns.

"For years, I have said that rather than using the appearance of these guns to restrict them, we should instead focus on how these weapons actually work and the features that make them especially dangerous," King said Thursday in a statement. "The Gas-Operated Semiautomatic Firearm Exclusion (GOSAFE) Act addresses the lethal capacity weapons like the one used in Lewiston and most of the deadliest mass shootings across the country. Nothing can bring back the lives of our family and friends, but responsible actions moving forward can reduce the likelihood of such a nightmare happening again in Maine or anywhere else."

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Colt M4 Carbine and AR-15 style rifles are displayed during the National Rifle Association Annual Meeting at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston on May 28, 2022. (PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images)

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The bill is cosponsored by Democrat Sens. Mark Kelly of Arizona and Michael Bennet of Colorado. 

The Firearms Policy Coalition, a nonprofit advocacy group for Second Amendment rights — also opposes the bill. In a post on X, the group said Thursday the bill "is one of the most aggressive rights violations yet."

"Many common-use firearms will be banned. Self-built firearms will be banned. Many self-modifications will be banned. Standard capacity magazines will be banned," the post read.

The bill comes as Democrats have been vying to pass harsher gun control laws across the country. This month, an Oregon judge blocked the state from enforcing a voter-approved law, which also proposes banning the sale of magazines capable of holding more than 10 rounds.