Political Quotes

“I rise today in opposition to H.R. 4296. This legislation will do nothing to curtail the violence that plagues our Nation. In fact, the military-looking semiautomatic weapons targeted by this legislation are involved in less than 1 percent of homicides nationwide. Frankly the proponents of this legislation have been involved in a massive attempt to mislead the public as to what exactly an assault weapon is. It is not an automatic machinegun. It is not a weapon used by the U.S. military. It is not a weapon any more or less deadly than the rifles my family had at the ranch I grew up on in southeastern Arizona. The fact is these so-called assault weapons are merely cosmetically altered, semiautomatic weapons. Additionally, there is a constitutional issue raised by this Federal legislation. The second amendment of the Constitution read: ``A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.'' I believe this provision could be read as a prohibition against the Federal Government denying citizens the right to bear arms. Besides the constitutional limitation on gun control, I have seen no evidence that demonstrates its effectiveness. In fact, many areas of the country that have the strictest gun control measures, such as Washington, DC, and New York City, also have some of the highest levels of violent crime.”