A ban on automatic assault weapons is a necessary first step toward resuscitating the soul of this country... — ABFoundation (@ABFalecbaldwin) December 17, 2012 There's a saying, "it's better to keep your mouth shut and appear stupid than to open it and remove all doubt." Ignoring the use of the opaque, political term "assault weapon," apparently Alec Baldwin is unaware that automatic weapons are already banned in the United States. The only exception is those weapons which were already in the country before 1986, and they are tightly regulated by the ATF.