Republican Texas congressional nominee Brandon Herrera blasted Democratic Massachusetts Rep. Jake Auchincloss early Saturday morning over what Herrera described as a glaring failure to understand existing federal firearms law.

The dispute centered on a referendum placed on the Massachusetts ballot by activists who support the Second Amendment. The referendum asks Bay State voters whether they support a gun control law passed in 2024 targeting what are commonly called “ghost guns” and “assault weapons.”

Auchincloss promoted the law Friday morning by posting a video advertisement on X. He said he was supporting the measure “as a Marine and dad.”

In the video, Auchincloss claims that parts for a “ghost gun” can be purchased online. While making that case, he removes a disassembled AR-15 from two boxes, reconnects the rifle’s upper receiver to its lower receiver, loads a magazine, and chambers a round.

As a Marine and dad, I’m voting Yes on 9 to keep assault weapons off our streets. https://t.co/eckH0z3Ids

— Jake Auchincloss (@JakeAuch) October 23, 2026

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That demonstration quickly drew Herrera’s attention. The Republican nominee is also a social media influencer known as “the AK Guy,” giving his criticism a particularly pointed edge in a debate about firearms.

“Imagine paying a political consulting firm to record and produce an ad, but nobody bothers to fact-check anything you say,” Herrera wrote in response to Auchincloss.

Herrera then delivered the punch line to his criticism. “What he’s demonstrating here is already a federal crime. What a joke.”

Imagine paying a political consulting firm to record and produce an ad, but nobody bothers to fact check anything you say.

What he’s demonstrating here is already a federal crime. What a joke. — Brandon Herrera (@TheAKGuy) October 24, 2026

A Community Note attached to Auchincloss’s post raised the same core objection, arguing that the conduct shown in the video was already prohibited under federal law.

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“It is federally illegal per 18 U.S.C. § 922 [sic] to have a firearm, including a stripped lower, from being shipped to your house. What he has shown is already a federal felony and has been for nearly 60 years,” the Community Note states.

Gun owners who want to build their own firearms often purchase partially completed receivers or frames, rather than the completed setup shown in the advertisement. Such components are available for popular firearms including the AR-15 rifle, M1911 pistols, and Glock-style pistols.

Those items are sometimes sold in kits containing other parts, but the owner still must build the firearm. According to The Gun Zone, that process requires tools and jigs and can take as many as three days of active work, depending on the owner’s experience, skill, and the project’s complexity.

Auchincloss’s campaign defended the advertisement by arguing that its focus was on parts used to construct firearms that are not traceable. The campaign also emphasized that federal law does not require every firearm assembled at home for personal use to carry a serial number.

“The ad refers to ordering the parts to build an untraceable gun. Federal law does not require all firearms assembled at home for personal use to have serial numbers,” a spokeswoman for Auchincloss’s campaign told the Daily Caller News Foundation.

The spokeswoman said the Massachusetts law addresses that issue by imposing state requirements on privately made firearms. That includes firearms assembled from unfinished frames or produced using 3D printing.

“The 2024 Massachusetts law at issue in Question 9 closes that gap by requiring privately made firearms, including those assembled from unfinished frames or made by 3D printing, to be serialized and registered with the state. The Congressman is advocating for preserving these protections under Massachusetts law.”

Herrera’s background extends beyond his social media identity. According to his X profile, he is also a federally licensed firearms manufacturer.

He won the Republican primary against Texas Rep. Tony Gonzales after Gonzales dropped out before the runoff election. Gonzales withdrew amid a sex scandal involving a staffer who later committed suicide.

The exchange left voters with two competing arguments over the Massachusetts law. Auchincloss’s campaign said the measure preserves state serialization and registration requirements, while Herrera argued the congressman’s advertisement depicted conduct already covered by federal restrictions.

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