On the recordFebruary 27, 2019
After the Parkland shooting, high school students in my district told me a heartbreaking truth. They didn't believe that Congress cared about their lives or their future. Sadly, I understood why. Complacency defined the Republican Congress' position on gun violence. They did nothing after moviegoers were slaughtered in Aurora, kindergartners were murdered in Newtown, and after one of our own colleagues, Congresswoman Gabby Giffords, was shot doing her job as a U.S. Representative. After 46 people were gunned down at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, I sat on this very floor in protest. My colleagues and I sat in solidarity with a very clear but somber message: No more. No more moments of silence. No more inaction while Americans had senseless deaths due to gun violence. No more would the entirety of solutions to gun violence be tweets with our thoughts and prayers. It has been 2 years since the sit-in and, finally, the inaction has come to an end. Thanks to the brave survivors, the students, the advocates, and the family members, we have been able to pass commonsense gun safety. Today is a new day, and we will continue this fight. ____________________
