MAGA Republicans condemned for 'disgusting' assault rifle badges

People watching the House of Representatives session on Wednesday were disturbed to find several House Republicans sporting rifle pins on their clothes.

Wednesday’s session was a vote on legislation related to Covid-19, and despite the legislation having nothing to do with gun reform, representatives George Santos (R-NY), Andrew Clyde (R-GA), and Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) all sported the pins.

Seemingly the pins represented their solidarity with other House Republicans as they spoke about gun legislation during the general speeches portion of the vote.

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Given the recent slew of mass shootings across the US, people found the pins disrespectful and out of touch.

“Imagine if politicians in some other country did this. What would we think of them, and their political culture? We need to think the same about this, and about ours,” Michael Smith tweeted in response to a photo.

“Further imagine if you were the parent of someone killed with an AR-15. This is disgusting,” he added.

Matthew tweeted, “So they're on the side of mass shootings. Got it.”

Representative Jimmy Gomez ( D-CA) tweeted asking, "where are these assault weapon pins coming from?" and "who is passing these out?"

It is unclear where the Representatives obtained the rifle pins.

Since 1 January 2023, there have been 39 mass shootings including the Half Moon Bay shooting which left seven people dead, and the Monterey Park shooting which left 11 dead.

Some pointed out that Santos' wearing the pin was ironic given he claimed he knew people who died in the 2016 Pulse nightclub shooting. Santos' claims are unsubstaniated.

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