Want to fight government – get F-15s, Biden tells opponents

In a speech on gun control, President Joe Biden taunted “brave right-wing Americans,” telling them that if they want to defend themselves against the government, they’ll “need an F-15.” Biden was slated by his critics, who argued that the Taliban did perfectly well against the US without such weapons.

Speaking to supporters in Pennsylvania, Biden promised to ban “assault weapons,” a poorly-defined term that Democrats in Congress claim covers the majority of semi-automatic rifles and pistols sold in the US. 

Addressing critics of his proposed ban, Biden ridiculed the argument that their firearms serve as a last line of defense against government overreach.

“And for those brave, right-wing Americans who say it’s all about keeping America … independent and safe: If you want to fight against a country, you need an F-15,” Biden declared. “You need something a little more than a gun.”

Republicans responded with outrage. “The fact that Joe Biden is casually joking about employing deadly force on the citizens of the United States is the strongest argument to oppose any and all gun control,” lawyer Matthew Kolken tweeted. “So, ‘Safer America’ means, ...checks notes:  A government threatening its citizens with F-15s,” journalist Margot Cleveland quipped.

Others pointed out that, despite the US military’s massive firepower advantage, and the tens of billions of dollars it spent equipping the Afghan army, the Taliban managed to seize control of Afghanistan last year with little more than light arms and explosives.

Biden’s words echoed those of Congressman Eric Swalwell (D-California), who in 2018 warned opponents of his proposed mandatory gun buyback scheme that any “war” between gun owners and the government “would be a short war,” as “the government has nukes.”