Val Demings: “One of my biggest fears as a 27-year law enforcement officer was that my officers, the officers who worked for me, the…”

“One of my biggest fears as a 27-year law enforcement officer was that my officers, the officers who worked for me, the officers who swore that they would protect and serve, would find themselves in an active shooter situation where they would be outgunned. As I indicated earlier, the AR-15 and other weapons like it, if you are shot with one, your chances of survival are greatly diminished. As my colleague from Mississippi indicated earlier, the weapon is designed to create mass devastation. It was designed for the battlefield. And you are right; on the battlefield, we want our soldiers to take the enemy down as quickly as possible. But those weapons were not designed for our streets, for our neighborhoods where our children play, for our schools. If we are a great society, if we want to be the great Nation that we always talk about, then let's do what is within our power as one of the most powerful bodies in the world. My 5-year-old granddaughter's kindergarten class had a moment of silence. I believe, as Members of Congress, we can do better than that.”