Eric Swalwell: “Today, we tell our fellow Americans that their children's right to learn without fear; that their own right to dance at…”

“Today, we tell our fellow Americans that their children's right to learn without fear; that their own right to dance at a concert, worship at a synagogue, shop at the mall; that all those rights to come home, to live, and to love are greater than any other right in the Constitution. This bill puts in place an expansion of violent history checks on firearm purchases where there were too many gaps before. It will not end every gun violence death in America, but we should try. It also will get rid of this argument about States like California and Illinois, where you have gun violence. You can no longer say, well, they have tough background checks there, so it is not working. Well, no, we are only as safe as the lowest common denominator. If our States like Nevada and Arizona have low restrictions when it comes to purchasing a firearm, we are only as safe as they are. We will have a nationwide background check that will make sure that all of us are safe. We are here, Mr. Chair, because of Mr. Thompson, because of Moms Demand Action, because of Everytown for Gun Safety, and because of March For Our Lives. Keep marching. You got us to this point.”