Obama voted for the SB 1195 ( summary) bill which defines an "assault weapon" as:
any firearm having a caliber of 50 or greater;or any semi-automatic firearm that has a:
magazine capacity in excess of 5 roundsThis means almost EVERY semiautomatic firearm ever made will be considered an assault weapon. The bill makes it a FELONY to own almost every 10, 12, 16, 20 and very light weight 28 gauge semi-automatic shotgun ever produced. High end Italian shotguns such as the Beretta Teknys and the extremely popular Remington 1100 would turn law abiding citizens into felons:
It would also ban and confiscate rifles such as the M1A
Since the WWII era M1 Garand is capable of holding more than 5 rounds of ammo it too would be banned:
And then there is the 1874 Sharps rifle used in the movie Quigley Down Under which comes in a 50 cal version:
This too, would be banned by Obama. Then Tom Selleck's character could be turned into a felon:
But only if he used a "replica" made after 1898. In other words, if you by a replica from this website you are a felon. If you buy an original, then you are ok. The British and the Americans during the Revolutionary war both used the Brown Bess musket which was designed in 1722. This rifle design is older the United States itself. It fires a 71 cal bullet which is much larger than the 50 cal cutoff set by this bill. While the ~300 year old rifles have been exempted with an "1898 antique" clause one needs to be careful because there are plenty of black powder rifles that are not exempt:
Non-Compliance with any part of SB 1195 will cause you to be charged with a FELONY.
Did they intend to ban tools that are commonly used for sport and hunting? The text of the bill seems to set the goal of doing exactly that:
The General Assembly finds …that the use of these weapons, devices, or attachments for sport or recreation is substantially outweighed by the danger these weapons or devices present to human life, and that restrictions should therefore be placed on the manufacture, delivery, and possession of these weapons, devices, and attachments.”
NOTES FOR FUTURE ADDITION:
I need proof of this:
http://armsandthelaw.com/archives/2008/04/obamas_smoking.php
Forget what he said in a survey, in 2003 Obama voted FOR IL SB1195 which would have banned the sale, possession and manufacturing of any semi-automatics (as well as magazines) capable of firing more than FIVE rounds. During the Senate Judiciary meeting on the bill, Obama commented that giving folks 90 days to surrender thair weapons was essentialy confiscation.
And then he voted YES.
Barack Obama supports banning the sale or transfer of all forms of semi-automatic weapons: According to his responses to an Illinois State Legislative Election 1998 National Political Awareness Test, Obama pledged to “Ban the sale or transfer of all forms of semi-automatic weapons.” (Project Vote Smart Website, www.votesmart.org, Accessed 3/5/08)
Barack Obama voted to support legislation that “would have banned most of the privately held hunting shotguns, target rifles, and black powder rifles” in Illinois: “[I]n 2003, Obama voted in support of SB1195, which, if passed, would have banned most of the privately held hunting shotguns, target rifles, and black powder rifles in the state. If the ban was enacted, law enforcement officials would have been authorized to forcibly enter private homes to confiscate newly banned firearms.” (Illinois State Rifle Association, “ISRA Blasts Candidate Obama On His Record Of Hostility Toward Law-Abiding Firearm Owners,” Press Release, 8/24/04)
SB 1195 Caused Furor; Would Have Banned Shotguns, Muzzleloaders. "The gun furor basically revolves around Senate Bill 1195, sponsored by Democratic Sen. Antonio Munoz. It would ban shotguns with a bore of .50 caliber or more, the net result, according to numerous interpretations, being to outlaw a variety of shotguns, and even muzzleloaders." (Lew Freedman, Op-Ed, "Hunters Need Not Worry--Yet," Chicago Tribune, 4/19/03)
Special Note:
The state of Illinois has moved their servers so finding old bills can be difficult. Searches for SB1194 on the new server only brings up stuff from the current Illinois Senate. I accidentally deleted my copy of this bill but will to host a copy of it once the old website is up and running again.
Sources:
State Senate Bill Targets Hunters, 3/19/2003 11:05:25 AM
Illinois Sportsmen and Gun Owners Against Brick Wall in State Legislature, Sunday, March 30, 2003
Arms and the Law, Obama's Smoking Gun? David Hardy · 4 April 2008 01:45 PM
