Congresswoman Carolyn McCarthy posed with a .50 Caliber Sniper Rifle at a recent press conference in Garden City. She joined with State Assemblywoman Patricia Eddington and members of New Yorkers Against Gun Violence to call for the passage of state and federal legislation to ban the weapon. The .50 Caliber Sniper Rifle has the ability to shoot down aircraft during take-off or landing.

"We must change our pre-9/11 gun laws to stop terrorists from legally obtaining weapons of mass destruction like the .50 Caliber Sniper Rifle," McCarthy said. "We saw the devastation terrorists can create armed with only boarding passes and box cutters and yet we have done nothing to prevent anyone, even those on terrorist watch lists, from obtaining weapons designed to shoot down airplanes. It's time to listen to common sense and ban the .50 Caliber Sniper Rifle."