FACT CHECK: Biden Again Repeats False Claim that Early Americans Couldn’t Buy Cannons

CLAIM: During Wednesday’s signing ceremony for police reforms, President Joe Biden again repeated his claim that the Second Amendment did not allow early Americans to buy cannons.

VERDICT: False.

The Washington Post gave Biden four Pinocchios when he previously claimed the purchase of cannons was prohibited by the Second Amendment and labeled the claim “false.”

On February 3, 2022, Breitbart News noted that Biden had made the claim that the Second Amendment barred cannon purchases multiple times.

When Biden makes this claim, he typically stresses his belief that the Second Amendment is not “absolute,” and he defends gun control proposals by saying, “This doesn’t violate anybody’s Second Amendment right. There is no violation of a Second Amendment rights.”

For example, on Wednesday, Biden suggested an “assault weapon” ban has “no negative impact on the Second Amendment.”

And he mentioned cannon purchases too:

On Wednesday, President Biden repeated his claim that certain weapons were prohibited at the time that the Second Amendment was ratified. That is simply untrue. https://t.co/RuueKPpXyZ

— Jonathan Turley (@JonathanTurley) May 26, 2022

As mentioned earlier, the Washington Post already gave Biden four Pinocchios for his claims about cannon purchases, labeling the claim “false.”

Breitbart News noted that Julie Anne Sweet, director of military studies at Baylor University, responded to Biden’s claim by telling PolitiFact, “It seems highly unlikely that there were restrictions on the private ownership [of cannons].”

AWR Hawkins is an award-winning Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News and the writer/curator of Down Range with AWR Hawkins, a weekly newsletter focused on all things Second Amendment, also for Breitbart News. He is the political analyst for Armed American Radio and a Turning Point USA Ambassador. Follow him on Instagram: @awr_hawkins. Reach him at awrhawkins@breitbart.com. You can sign up to get Down Range at breitbart.com/downrange