Voting and Assault Weapons
President Bill Clinton was right when he said, “A great democracy does not make it harder to vote than to buy an assault weapon.”
From TP:
While Clinton also called on America to implement health care reform and invest in science and education, the gun line elicited the biggest controversy, leading Alex Seitz-Wald to fact-check the claim. As it turns out, Clinton is correct: individuals can buy assault weapons without showing identification in more than 30 states, while federal law prohibits states from allowing individuals to vote without some form of identification. In recent years, 13 states have passed stricter voter ID requirements and half a dozen more are considering voter suppression measures in the aftermath of the Supreme Court ruling invalidating a key section of the Voting Rights Act.
In fact, a ThinkProgress analysis found that anyone can obtain assault rifles from unlicensed dealers at gun shows or online without a background check in 39 states. Zero states allow people to vote without some proof of identification:
