Presidential hopeful Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., has released one of the most draconian gun control proposals of the primary season, complete not just with the usual "assault weapon" bans but also a requirement that every gun owner obtain a license from the federal government.

CNN's Poppy Harlow rightly asked Booker whether his proposal would mean gun owners who purchased their "assault weapons" lawfully would face prosecution and prison time if they refused to surrender them.

"The critical thing is, I think most Americans agree, these weapons of war should not be on our streets," Booker initially responded. Harlow then pushed back against his equivocation only to elicit more equivocation.

"Again, we should have a law that bans these weapons, and we should have a reasonable period in which people can turn in these weapons," Booker replied. "Right now we have a nation that allows in streets and communities these weapons that shouldn't exist."

For all of his tip-toeing around the question, he had to concede a central truth about law: after a "reasonable" grace period, any gun owner refusing to give up "assault weapons" by choice will be forced to do so under threat of prison time.

Democrats have long positioned themselves as the party of criminal justice reform and restorative justice. Drug War-happy Republicans were once happy to split that narrative. But times have changed, and Democrats must reckon with the reality of what their stringent policies imply. Every new ban or law puts a state-sponsored gun to the head of all citizens. Fail to pay a massive tax hike? You could very well face prison time. Refuse to comply with the legal proceedings bringing you there? The police may use force, including deadly force, to incarcerate you.

This is not an argument against the rule of law, but rather a reminder of how seriously lawmaking ought to be taken. Lawmakers must consider what constitutes an offense so egregious to civil society that it's worth depriving you of liberty and even threatening violence to force you not to do something.

The only answer Booker could truthfully give to Harlow's question was a resounding yes. If it doesn't result in jail time, then any law requiring gun owners to surrender their guns would be not a law, but a suggestion.

[ Related: Cory Booker: Americans should be 'thrown in jail' if they won't give up their guns]