Mr. President, I want to start off by saying I am deeply saddened by the tragedy in Boston. Franni's and my thoughts and prayers are with everyone who has been affected. Franni and I went to school in Boston. In fact, we met more than 43 years ago at a freshman mixer in Copley Square, so we know Boston. We have witnessed firsthand the kind of compassion and resilience we have seen from Bostonians, and I have faith we will find whoever did this and bring that person or those persons to justice. Mr. President, I came to the floor today to speak in support of the gun violence legislation we are considering. Since the tragedy in Newtown, we have been asking ourselves what we should do to address this problem of gun violence in our country. My primary focus in the wake of Newtown has been on mental health. Improving the access to mental health care has been one of my top priorities since I came to the Senate, and I am glad people are beginning to focus more on the issue. If we are going to make mental health a part of this, let's make it more than just a talking point. Let's make it a true national priority. Let's really do something to improve access to treatment for folks who need it.…
On the recordApril 16, 2013
Share & report
More from Al Franken
Jun 17, 2021
They pack the court with Federalist Society judges during Trump and with really partisan, unqualified judges.
Dec 16, 2020
I hope it is Richard Burr or Susan Collins so we can pick up a Senate seat because we got the right governors there. Look, contrast this to the people Trump picked. There is no comparison. He is picking competent, experienced people.
Jun 20, 2021
He’s kind of right. If everybody had a right to vote gets to vote, they would probably lose. That’s why, you know, all these states have been passing these laws to try to suppress votes. And then the most alarming thing, of course, is…
Feb 16, 2021
I mean, at one point in the speech, he said that, well, you know, incitement is a legal term but there’s no doubt that he provoked this.





