LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Some Nebraska lawmakers are expressing shock and outrage that gun owners were allowed to bring loaded, semi-automatic rifles into the state Capitol to protest bills that would have imposed new restrictions on gun ownership.
Some lawmakers say they viewed the demonstration as an intimidation tactic during a contentious legislative hearing Friday afternoon that drew an estimated 400 protesters.
A few of those protesters displayed their guns in the hallways and in a public hearing room, even though the Nebraska Capitol bars people from wielding political signs or props in the building and doesn’t allow concealed firearms.