Beto O'Rourke Says AR-15 Buybacks Would Be 'Mandatory' | HuffPost Latest News

Beto ORourke has clarified his most significant statement from Thursdays Democratic presidential debate, when he told viewers: Hell yes, were going to take your AR-15, your AK-47. Youre not going to be allowed to use it against your fellow Americans anymore.

The former Texas congressman was asked Friday by the seemingly confused MSNBC host Willie Geist how he would implement his plan to take military-style weapons out of the public realm. ORourke responded that people would simply be required to comply with the law hes proposing, which would introduce a mandatory buyback program for semiautomatic weapons.

Its expecting Americans to follow the law, said ORourke, who has made gun violence a central issue in his bid for the presidency.

Its not voluntary, he said later. It is mandatory. It will be the law.

WATCH: Beto O'Rourke explains his assault weapon confiscation remarks at the Democratic debate on @Morning_Joe.

\"It is mandatory. It will be the law.\"https://t.co/mk9iA5ygPg pic.twitter.com/nKjFNPo2n4

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It will be the law.\"https://t.co/mk9iA5ygPg pic.twitter.com/nKjFNPo2n4 MSNBC (@MSNBC) September 13, 2019\n\n","options":{"_hide_media":{"label":"Hide photos, videos, and cards","value":false},"_hide_thread":{"label":"Hide previous Tweet in conversation thread","value":true}},"provider_name":"Twitter","thumbnail_height":675,"thumbnail_url":"https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EEV4gKJXsAAz692.jpg","thumbnail_width":1200,"title":"MSNBC on 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WATCH: Beto O'Rourke explains his assault weapon confiscation remarks at the Democratic debate on @Morning_Joe .

"It is mandatory. It will be the law."https://t.co/mk9iA5ygPg pic.twitter.com/nKjFNPo2n4
MSNBC (@MSNBC) September 13, 2019

But it will not lead to federal agents knocking on doors to seize the weapons, as Geist suggested it might.

As with many of our laws, we dont go door-to-door searching peoples homes to see if they are in fact breaking the law, ORourke said.

But congressman, you know, the law is that those guns are legal right now, asked Geist, apparently not grasping that ORourke was discussing a different reality. So how would they be breaking the law by owning those guns?

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Because by working with Congress ... were going to change the law so it will no longer be legal to hold one of these, ORourke replied.

Military-style weapons like the AR-15 and AK-47 have been used repeatedly in many of the countrys most deadly mass shootings including last months massacre in ORourkes hometown of El Paso, Texas, that claimed 22 lives.

When youre shot with one of those high-impact, high-velocity rounds, it blows a hole out your system the size of an orange. It shreds everything inside. Then why is it OK to leave 10 million of them on the street if you agree that it is a potential instrument of terror? ORourke said.