“Assault Weapon” has largely been a term since the early 90s during the first attempt at a Federal Assault Weapons Ban. It is a generic term that, at a high level, more or less lines up with “assault rifles, automatic weapons, and high capacity magazines”. But I hear you, obviously in good faith, ask
What is an assault-style weapon?
Good news. There is a handy dandy PDF that goes into great detail and even provides flow charts so you can figure out if a rifle or shotgun or whatever that is not explicitly listed in the guide still counts as an assault weapon
I get it. There are so many bad faith gun nuts out there who just can’t help but spew the same tired propaganda from the 90s when the NRA and other lobbyists torpedo’d the FAWB (if you ever wondered why there were so many awkward cutouts that made it so ineffective…). But the good news is that law makers actually are aware of that and are providing not only specific weapon lists but also details on what makes them count as an “assault weapon” for the purpose of the law.
I realize that you, obviously acting in good faith, could have made a much better one liner. But cut the lawmakers trying to reduce the number of dead children some slack for not getting the marketing to your high standards. They have higher priorities. Like… fewer dead kids and mass shooting events.