Maxwell Frost: “Mr. Speaker, when the Committee on Rules met yesterday afternoon to consider this rule, I made two points I feel are…”

“Mr. Speaker, when the Committee on Rules met yesterday afternoon to consider this rule, I made two points I feel are worth repeating here for the benefit of all Members of the House. The first point relates directly to the consideration of the ban on assault weapons. In the 103d Congress, I believe a serious error was made when the House was not given the opportunity to take a final up or down vote on this issue. Given the controversy surrounding issues relating to gun ownership, these issues should be addressed directly, not buried in other legislative proposals, as was the assault weapon ban in 1994. Consequently, the desire of a great many Members to have a direct vote on this issue is understandable. However, it is how we are getting to this direct vote that I find peculiar and out of the ordinary.”