Images of AR-15 semi-automatic rifles are everywhere in American public life: Republican congressmen sport lapel pins shaped like AR-15s. Confederate flags with the silhouette of an AR-15 and the phrase “come and take it” flew outside the Capitol during the January 6 insurrection. They are also used to evoke the need for stricter gun safety measures.
On Saturday, the AR-15 re-entered American politics in another way – as the weapon used in the assassination attempt of former president Donald Trump.
