Not content with his stated plans to ban America’s favorite rifle, President Joe Biden (D) has again set his sights on banning the most-common handguns used for home defense, self-defense, concealed carry and competition.
Outside the White House, when off the teleprompter (comments his press secretary would soon walk back), Biden called 9 mm handguns “high-caliber weapons” that aren’t “rational” for self-defense purposes. The statement came as the president recounted a visit he allegedly once made to a New York trauma hospital, where he says doctors showed him X-rays of gunshot wounds.
“They said a .22-caliber bullet will lodge in the lung, and we can probably get it out—may be able to get it and save the life,” Biden stated. “A 9 mm bullet blows the lung out of the body.”
Following that statement, which showed just how little the president understands about guns and ballistics, Biden insinuated that Americans shouldn’t have pistols chambered in the very popular 9 mm.
“So, the idea of these high-caliber weapons is, uh, there’s simply no rational basis for it in terms of self-protection, hunting,” Biden said.
For those keeping count, this is at least the third time Biden has called for banning 9 mm handguns—a direct contradiction to gun-control advocates who like to brag that they “don’t want to take anyone’s guns.”
Last July, in a town hall meeting televised by CNN, Biden stated: “The idea you need a weapon that can have the ability to fire 20, 30, 40, 50, 120 shots from that weapon, whether … whether it’s a 9 mm pistol or whether it’s a rifle, is ridiculous. I’m continuing to push to eliminate the sale of those things.”
Nearly two years earlier, at a November 2019 private fundraiser in Seattle, Biden reportedly asked attendees, “Why should we allow people to have military-style weapons including pistols with 9 mm bullets and can hold 10 or more rounds?”
Biden followed that up with a claim that since there is a shotshell limit for hunting migratory waterfowl, there should be a similar limit for all guns. “We protect geese from Canada more than we do people,” he said.
As most gun owners are aware, the 9 mm cartridge is far from the most-powerful handgun cartridge used for self-defense, competition, and recreational shooting. The 10 mm, .40 S&W, .357 Sig, and .45 ACP all pack more punch than the 9 mm; actually, many people still consider the 9 mm to be underpowered for defensive use.
So then, does Biden also want to ban handguns chambered for those rounds?
Revolvers are also chambered in a lot of more-powerful cartridges than the 9 mm, including the .357 Mag., .44 Mag., .327 Federal Mag, .460 S&W, .500 S&W, .480 Ruger and others. If handguns are to be banned by power, will Biden soon have those on his hit list?
If one good thing came out of this statement at the White House, it’s the fact that Biden seems to suddenly realize he can’t simply institute sweeping gun-control laws by the wave of a magic wand.
“I can’t dictate this stuff,” he lamented. “I can do the things I’ve done and any executive action I can take, I’ll continue to take. But I can’t outlaw a weapon. I can’t change a background check. I can’t do that.”
In the end, it seems the president would rather see Americans forced to defend themselves with .22 LR handguns or something. Or perhaps he just wants lawful gun owners to, as he says he once advised his wife, “take that double-barrel shotgun and fire two blasts” if they are ever in a situation requiring armed self-defense.
