These are two congressmen. Really happy congressmen. Sharing an AR-15. In the Capitol Building.

The one on the left is Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-SC) and the one on the right is Rep. Ken Buck (R-CO).

Why are they doing this? According to Buck, he went to great lengths to get the “okay” to bring the gun into his office and display it as “a symbol in his belief in the Bill of Rights” (because simply enlarging the scripted document and hanging that would’ve been too “on-the-nose”).

According to the Washington Post, sizable hoops had to be jumped through to ensure that the Colorado representative’s love received the desired broadcast and display:

Buck, a House freshman, said he sought approval from numerous authorities: “I went to the Ethics Committee; I got permission to accept the gift” from a business. “I went to Capitol Hill police; I got permission to bring it into my office. They went to the D.C. police; they got permission for me to transport it into the District. I went to TSA, and followed all of the regulations in getting it onto the plane and getting it here.”

While carrying the specific high-powered weapon is legal within the District of Columbia — according to the Post — the Metro Police Department referred all questions regarding this matter to the Capitol Police and, strangely, would not comment whether they concurred with having it on DC grounds or not.

Through their spokesperson, the Capitol Police said that it’s legal for congressman to have firearms on Capitol Hill, so long as they’re in their office, not loaded and “securely wrapped”.

Buck’s red, white and blue blaster was not only unloaded, it was adorned with a trigger lock. Also, its bolt carrier assembly was stripped from it before it even arrived.

“Putting a trigger lock on an inoperable gun is like putting a chastity belt on a eunuch,” Buck said. “The only dangerous thing about that gun is if someone took it off the wall and hit somebody else over the head with it.”