Talarico: I Totally Respect the 2A, But That Doesn’t Mean I Don’t Want to Outlaw AR-15s

James Talarico says he respects the Second Amendment. But when the Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate was recently asked whether a federal “assault weapons” ban remains on the table, his answer was clear:

“Absolutely.”

The answer comes as Talarico’s previous support for a sweeping list of gun control policies has resurfaced — and as some of the largest gun control organizations in the country line up behind his Senate campaign.

Talarico’s Gun Control Record

In a resurfaced 2020 video, Talarico laid out a list of gun control policies he said he was interested in “championing and working on.”

They included:

• Universal background checks
• Closing the so-called “gun show loophole”
• An “assault weapons” ban
• A ban on so-called “large-capacity” magazines
• Restrictions on large firearm purchases
• Government standards involving handgun design

Talarico also said the Second Amendment is not “unlimited” or “absolute” and argued that government can impose additional restrictions on the right to keep and bear arms.

Any question about whether Talarico had moved away from the most sweeping portions of that agenda was addressed during a September interview with NewsNation.

Host Leland Vittert asked whether Talarico could vote in the Senate for an “assault weapons” or large-capacity-magazine ban.

“Depending on the details of the legislation, yes,” Talarico responded.

Vittert followed up: Was an “assault weapons” ban still on the table?

“Absolutely,” Talarico said.

Talarico went on to argue that he supports the Second Amendment while also supporting what he calls “common sense gun safety measures.”

What an ‘Assault Weapons’ Ban Actually Targets

The terminology matters. Public discussion of “assault weapons” bans can blur the distinction between semiautomatic and fully automatic firearms. But an “assault weapons” ban isn’t simply a ban on fully automatic machine guns, which are already subject to extensive federal regulation.

AR-15-style rifles are semiautomatic, meaning they fire one round for each pull of the trigger. They’re not machine guns. Yet recent federal “Assault Weapons Ban” legislation has targeted sweeping categories of semiautomatic rifles, pistols and shotguns.

Under H.R. 3115, for example, a semiautomatic rifle capable of accepting a detachable magazine can fall under the proposed ban if it has just one of several common features, including a pistol grip, adjustable stock, barrel shroud or threaded barrel. The legislation also reaches numerous semiautomatic pistols and shotguns and specifically identifies entire families of firearms, including AR- and AK-type rifles and their copies, duplicates and variants.

In other words, these proposals are not aimed at machine guns. They’re bans aimed squarely at broad categories of ordinary semiautomatic firearms currently owned by Americans.

GIFFORDS and Everytown Are Backing Talarico

Talarico’s positions have also earned support from major national gun control organizations.

GIFFORDS formally endorsed his U.S. Senate campaign, praising his advocacy for expanded background checks, stronger firearm-storage requirements and raising the purchasing age for semiautomatic weapons. GIFFORDS says it expects Talarico to continue pursuing those policies nationally if elected.

Everytown for Gun Safety supported Talarico as well. During his Texas House career, Everytown included Talarico among the candidates it backed as part of its effort to build what the organization called a “Gun Sense Majority” in Texas.

The national gun control movement is also putting significant money into the 2026 elections. GIFFORDS recently launched a $10 million national midterm campaign, with initial spending in Michigan, Virginia and New Jersey and plans to expand into additional races. GIFFORDS Executive Director Emma Brown told Semafor that the organization intends to use the money to define Republicans it considers weak on gun policy and support Democrats it considers strong on the issue “across the map.”

Whether any portion of that money ultimately reaches Texas remains to be seen. But GIFFORDS has already endorsed Talarico and its leadership has made clear that it intends to expand its spending into races where it believes its message can have an impact. Texas is therefore a race worth watching as that spending develops.

Texans Should Know Where Candidates Stand

Candidates can describe their gun policies however they choose. Voters should look at the specific proposals they have supported, the statements they have made, and the records they have built.

Texas Gun Rights’ One Big Beautiful Ballot is designed to give voters another resource for reviewing where candidates stand on Second Amendment issues as the November election approaches.