Washington, D.C. (WBEN) - With a month left in his term in Congress, Representative Chris Jacobs (R-NY-27) told WBEN Wednesday that an assault weapons ban, for which he broke with his party and supported, is not likely to be approved in a lame duck session of congress.
Amid the backlash over his support of the gun control legislation earlier this year, he announced in June that he would not run for another term in Congress.
Jacobs insists he has no regrets if the assault weapons ban fails in congress.
"I felt I needed to speak up on it. Then the Buffalo massacre happened and Uvalde. I am a second amendment supporter but that doesn't mean every instrument should be available to everyone. These are military grade firearms, designed to kill people. I just needed to speak up," he said.
There are other actions that congress can take, Jacobs said, to decrease the likelihood of mass shootings.
"Raise the age to 21 to buy an assault weapon, for example, like we have done in New York. Also, limit the magazine size. Why does someone need a magazine of 30, 40 or 50 rounds to hunt or protect himself,?" he asked.
Jacobs has also introduced a licensing regiment for assault weapons. "It's basically a cooling off period. It involves enhanced background checks and a gun safety class. It also gives law enforcement a little more time to be aware of what is going on." Jacobs said it may mitigate mass shootings that often seemingly occur after impulse purchases.
Threatened rail strike
President Biden is asking Congress to step in to prevent a nationwide rail strike. Under the Constitution's commerce clause, Congress can intervene and prevent a strike.
"This is going to pass," said Jacobs. "Rail is a unique animal and we are so dependent on it. There's still time for both parties to come together. But we cannot shut down our rail in the weeks before Christmas."
Speaker Nancy Pelosi was prepping the House for two votes on Wednesday. The first to consider adopting a tentative agreement, which was negotiated by labor leaders and railroad companies. The second, to add seven days of paid sick leave for railroaders.
Jacobs said he respects the rail workers and the critical role they play, but added, "this is one of the backbones of this economy and we're just climbing out of the disaster of the supply chain crisis."
He expects supply chain issues to worsen in the US because of what's currently happening in China with mass protests that started as a revolt against the government's harsh zero-COVID policy, and turned this past weekend into a broader protest against the communist government and its leader - President Xi Jinping.
WBEN asked Jacobs about his plans in the new year, once his term ends in Washington. "I'll tell you one thing, I'm not going to be a lobbyist.
I'm going back to the private sector. I'll never say never to serving the public again in the future. But I will continue serving our community as a private citizen.