Political Quotes

“I thank the Senator for his question, for his passion, and for his ability to articulate how complicated this issue is and the complicated nature of the motivations that led to the shooting in Orlando, which is why the Senator's legislation that would elevate the treatment of hate crimes with respect to the prohibitions on gun sales is so critically important. I hope we have time to debate that as well. It is imperative that we act right now, and it is within our power to change the reality that exists every day on the streets of America and with respect to these mass shootings. What we have is loads and reams of data from State experiences to tell us that when you take these commonsense steps--such as applying background checks to a broader range of gun sales--you have a dramatic reduction in the number of homicides that are committed, you have a dramatic reduction in the number of people who are killed. There is no doubt that we have the ability to do something. You are right that there is a panoply of measures we need to consider. We have suggested starting with the two that are the least controversial. Start with the two that have broad support of the American public. Start with an expansion of background checks to gun shows and internet sales and the inclusion of people on the terrorist watch list, of those who are prohibited from buying guns. There are the two on which there is no controversy outside of this body, so that would be a nice start.…”