Dianne Feinstein

In 1994, Congress passed the first ban on the manufacture and sale of certain types of semiautomatic rifles, commonly known as assault weapons. Dianne Feinstein argues in the following viewpoint that this ban has reduced gun violence. She contends that as the availability of the assault weapons decreased, so, too, did the number of people who were killed or injured by assault weapons and the number of semiautomatic rifles that were used in crimes. Feinstein maintains that the American public is very supportive of the ban despite the efforts of the pro-gun lobby to repeal the assault weapons ban.Therefore, she argues, the gun ban should not be repealed. Feinstein is a U.S. senator from California.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. By what percentage did traces of assault weapons used in crimes decrease after the...