Lindsey Graham claims he needs AR-15 because ‘gangs’ might attack his house after a natural disaster

A top Republican senator has prompted ridicule after suggesting that he would fight off criminal gangs with his AR-15 in the event of a natural disaster that somehow leads to the collapse of public order.

Lindsey Graham, senator for South Carolina, made the bizarre claim in an interview on Fox News about gun control, in light of a series of deadly mass shootings in recent weeks.

“I own an AR-15,” he told the news channel’s Chris Wallace.

“If there’s a natural disaster in South Carolina where the cops can’t protect my neighborhood, my house will be the last one that the gang will come to, because I can defend myself.”

Graham, who supports some gun control measures such as “red flag” laws, has opposed plans for a ban on assault weapons in the US.

Critics of the senator on social media quickly pointed out that his dystopian fantasy of gangs marauding through the streets of South Carolina was just that - a fantasy.

In fact, natural disasters have occurred quite often in the US in recent years and not led to a terrifying breakdown of society…

And others noted how Graham was essentially suggesting that in the event of a disaster in his state, he (an elected representative) would be holed up in his house waiting for chaos to ensure.

As well as not being backed up by evidence, the senator’s view of his own state is also just an incredibly sad way to think about the world…

However, the interview is not the first time that Graham has wheeled out this fantasy, as he also claimed in 2019 that his AR-15 was needed to defend himself against a hypothetical state of lawlessness in South Carolina.

He told reporters that he had the weapon in case “there’s a hurricane, a natural disaster, no power, no cops, no anything”, adding that he wanted supposed looters to be afraid of coming to his house.

“I think if you show up on the porch with an AR-15 they’ll probably go down the street,” he reportedly said.

So if there’s ever a natural disaster in South Carolina, make sure you stay well away from Lindsey Graham’s house...