Reel Off 30 Clips in Conjunction With a Magazine

Immediately following the Minnesota Anuncion Church shooting in August, 2025 Mayor Jacob Frey (D) said the following on MSNBC:

“We have these assault rifles that can reel off 30 clips in conjunction with a magazine before the person needs to reload.”

Mayor Jacob Frey (Minneapolis, MN Democrat)

Context

This gem comes from the Mayor of Minneapolis in the immediate aftermath of the recent Minnesota shooting. Like many politicians, he rushed to demand gun bans before the facts were even fully known — and in the process, delivered one of the most confusing firearm “explanations” ever spoken into a microphone.

The statement was meant to justify renewed calls for banning so-called “assault rifles” and “high-capacity magazines.” Unfortunately, the mayor’s attempt to describe how these firearms function turned into a mash-up of buzzwords that revealed a lack of even the most basic firearm knowledge.

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Fact-Check Breakdown

“Assault rifles”

• Fact: An assault rifle is a select-fire military weapon capable of both semi-automatic and fully automatic fire. These have been heavily regulated since 1934 and virtually unavailable to civilians since 1986.
• Reality: Politicians usually mean “assault weapons,” a made-up political term for semi-automatic rifles like the AR-15, often defined by cosmetic features (pistol grips, adjustable stocks, etc.), not function.

“30 clips”

• Fact: A clip is not the same thing as a magazine. A clip is a device used to load ammunition into a magazine. A magazine is what feeds rounds into the firearm.
• Reality: Saying “30 clips” is nonsensical. It’s like saying your car runs on “30 gas cans” instead of a fuel tank.

“In conjunction with a magazine”

• Fact: Clips and magazines are not combined to multiply capacity. A firearm feeds from one or the other.
• Reality: The phrase doesn’t make sense mechanically. You can’t stack a clip and a magazine to create more firepower.

“Before the person needs to reload”

• Fact: Every firearm requires reloading. The only difference is how often it happens depending on magazine size.
• Reality: Even a revolver, which must be loaded round by round without speed loaders, can be reloaded in less time than it would take most victims to react, run, hide, or fight back.

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Why It Matters

Statements like this aren’t just embarrassing — they’re dangerous. Laws are being written and pushed by people who don’t understand the mechanics of what they’re trying to ban. When officials conflate clips, magazines, and military weapons into one big scary buzzword salad, they’re not making informed policy. They’re legislating out of ignorance — and ignorance is no foundation for laws that restrict constitutional rights.

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Conclusion

This quote highlights a central problem in the gun control debate: too often, the loudest voices calling for bans don’t even know what they’re talking about. If you don’t understand the difference between a clip and a magazine, or between an AR-15 and a machine gun, you have no business writing laws that would criminalize millions of law-abiding citizens for owning them.

Or, as that famous meme puts it: “What you’ve just said is one of the most insanely idiotic things I have ever heard… Everyone in this room is now dumber for having listened to it.”