Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, said he opposes banning assault weapons.
King's comments came during an interview on MSNBC.
On the heels of the mass shooting in a Texas church, King was asked specifically if he supported a ban on a "military-style weapon" or an "AR-15 weapon."
"I'm from a state where was have one of the highest gun ownership rates in the country," he said. "Yet, we have one of the lowest rates of gun crime."
And he added: "It's called an assault weapon, but it's simply a semi-automatic hunting rifle in costume, with a different kind of stock. But the functionality of the weapon is exactly the same as [ones] used by legitimate hunters."
"So, I have a problem with banning a weapon because of its appearance."
"A lot of times in these situations apparently, it's when the fellow — it's always a fellow —starts to reload, that's when you might have a chance to stop the tragedy. "So, magazine size, I think, is something I do think we need to look at."
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