Political Quotes

“I rise to mark a historic day in the nationwide movement to get junk guns, or Saturday night specials, off our streets. The California State Assembly and the California Senate passed legislation to prohibit the manufacture and sale of junk guns in California. The bills require that all guns made or sold in California meet the same quality and safety test currently required of imported firearms. I applaud and thank each and every member of the California Legislature who voted for the bill for their courage in supporting this important legislation. I especially wish to acknowledge Assemblyman Louis Caldera and Senator Richard Polanco, whose leadership and tenacity contributed immeasurably to the passage of this legislation. The bills passed by the California Legislature are nearly identical to a bill I introduced in the Senate last spring, the American Handgun Standards Act, which I have reintroduced this year. For the largest State in the Union to pass this legislation is extraordinary. I trust that this important victory is just what we need here in Congress to move forward with junk gun legislation on the Federal level. Each year, nearly 40,000 Americans die from gunshots and more than 200,000 are injured. Gunshots are now the leading cause of death among children in California. I have spoken on this floor many times before about the junk gun double standard that has flooded our streets with cheap, unsafe, easily concealable handguns.”