On the recordFebruary 6, 2020
Like so many of my colleagues, I rise today during National Gun Violence Survivors Week. We mark this occasion at the beginning of February because with a gun death rate 10 times greater than other developed nations, more Americans have already been killed with guns in 2020 than are killed in the entire year in our peer countries. We are a Nation suffering an epidemic of gun violence. Each year, more than 36,000 Americans are killed in acts of gun violence, and an additional 100,000 are injured by firearms. The trauma caused by this violence is not limited to the victims. Losing a loved one to gun violence is a wound that never heals. If this were any other epidemic destroying lives on such a great scale, we would have long ago taken action. To be fair, in this House, we did act. Nearly a year ago, we passed bipartisan background check legislation, H.R. 8, to close loopholes that allow gun sales to go unchecked. In the Senate, Leader McConnell is blocking a vote and choosing obstruction over saving lives. Enough is enough. For all the survivors of gun violence, this week, we demand action. ____________________
