(NewsNation) — U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene suggested that the students attacked in the Uvalde, Texas, school shooting could have defended themselves with JR-15s, a “smaller, safer, lighter version” of the AR-15 rifle.
The Georgia Republican suggested it in a tweet, with a picture of an advertisement for the JR-15, and a photo of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Friday.
“The kids at Uvalde needed JR-15s to defend themselves from the evil maniac that didn’t care about laws,” Greene said in the social media post, “At least they could have defended themselves since no one else did, while their parents were held back by police.”
“Give the guns to the government & they’ll protect you,” said Green, including a “face with rolling eyes” emoji.
Greene sent this Tweet on the same day that Pelosi delivered remarks on the floor of the House of Representatives in support of H.R. 1808, the Assault Weapons Ban. She specifically mentioned the JR-15, advertised by gun-maker WEE1 Tactical.
“The manufacturer stated their goal was to develop a shooting platform that was not only sized correctly but also ‘looks, feels and operates just like mom and dad’s gun,’” said Pelosi. “‘Mom and dad’s gun,’ they use that expression.”
The advertisement for the JR-15 includes specifications for the “.22 long rifle” and says that it was designed with a “tamper-resistant safety that puts adults in control of the firearms safety switch.”
“This gun is yet another part of the gun industry’s mission to market to children, who are more likely to die by firearms than any other cause of death,” said Shannon Watts, founder of the gun control group Moms Demand Action.
During the 2020–21 school year, there were 93 school shootings with casualties at public and private elementary and secondary schools, according to the Report on Indicators of School Crime and Safety: 2021 released in June by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), within the U.S. Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences (IES).
This statistic is the highest of any year since data collection began.
