Montana Democratic Sen. Max Baucus was pleased that he and his congressional colleagues allowed a federal ban on assault weapons to expire at midnight on Monday.

Baucus voted for the 10-year ban in 1994, but since then has had a change of heart. The ban was part of a larger crime bill, which Baucus said was successful in many respects.

"I don't support the assault weapons ban," Baucus said in a statement. "Many of the provisions of the 1994 crime bill have been effective, such as putting more than 200 police on Montana streets through the COPS program. But I believe one of the most important roles of a lawmaker is to examine whether a law of the past is effective. In the case of the assault weapons ban it's clear that it has not been."

Baucus spokesman Barrett Kaiser declined to elaborate on why the assault weapons ban was not effective.

"The statement speaks for itself," Kaiser said. "Max doesn't support gun control."

The 1994 law, which banned 19 types of military assault weapons, was opposed by the National Rifle Association. During his 1996 re-election bid Baucus was heavily criticized by Republican opponent Denny Rehberg for supporting the assault weapons ban.

Rehberg, who in 2000 was elected to represent Montana in the House of Representatives, was pleased to see the ban expire.

"I don't think it should have been put in in the first place," Rehberg said.

Baucus changed his position on the ban before running for re-election in 2002. Thanks to the change he received the National Rifle Association's endorsement.

President Bush has said he supported extending the ban, but has been criticized by Democratic opponent Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., for not lobbying Congress to extend the ban. Republican congressional leaders rejected Kerry's call for a vote to extend the ban last week.

Although Baucus did not have the opportunity to vote against extending the ban last week, he did have a chance on March 2. The effort to extend the ban failed by a vote of 52 to 47, with Baucus being one of the 52 senators to vote against the extension. Sen. Conrad Burns, R-Mont., who opposed the ban in 1994, also voted against its extension in March.

The National Rifle Association hailed the expiration of the ban.

"Today, the Clinton gun ban expired," the association said in a statement on its Web site. "The ban's enactment in 1994 was political chest-thumping and deceit at its worst. Now that the ban is over, as was the case for decades prior to and during the life of the ban, criminals still will not legally be able to possess these firearms. Law-abiding citizens, however, will once again be free to purchase semi-automatic firearms, regardless of their cosmetic features, for target shooting, shooting competitions, hunting, collecting, and most importantly, self-defense."

The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence lamented the bans expiration and warned about the repercussions.