RNC wants attendees to bring guns — but tennis balls will be banned: documents

The Republican Party is fine with guests bringing guns into the area surrounding the convention center, but hard water bottles will be banned during the national convention this year, documents show.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel cited a proposed ordinance governing anyone crossing the security line into the immediate vicinity of the Republican National Convention. According to the demands, individuals would be required to leave out all non-plastic containers, tennis balls, and other items.

"Any lock attached to a bicycle" is another example cited in the document. "Canned goods, any can, bottle, thermos, cooler or ice chest, any adhesive or any rope, chain, cable, strapping, wire, string, line, tape or similar materials in length greater than six inches."

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Even air rifles are banned. Real rifles, however, are fair game.

"I find that totally absurd," said Alderman Robert Bauman, whose district covers the convention center. "Literally, you can't have tennis balls, but you can have an AR-15 assault rifle."

Currently, Bauman is a cosponsor of a measure that would outline the rules for those within the RNC security "footprint."

According to the report, city officials say they don't have a lot of wriggle room.

"We are at the mercy of state law for this," explained the mayor's chief of staff, Nick DeSiato.

The state laws ban "machine guns and other weapons; short-barreled shotguns and short-barreled rifles; and silencers," said the report.

While the rules reject any "projectile," the state laws ban any community "from prohibiting the possession or carrying of legal firearms," said the report, citing City Attorney Evan Goyke.

"The statutory references in the Council's file relate to those weapons state law has prohibited - machine guns, fully automatic weapons, short-barreled shotguns, and silencers," he wrote. "This is the extent of local firearm regulation allowed under state law - municipalities cannot regulate firearm possession beyond regulations in state statute."

Guns will be banned inside of the convention center; however, as the U.S. Secret Service can supersede the local and state law within the "hard perimeter."

Read the full report here.