Tom Udall: “today along with the gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. McCarthy) and the gentleman from Kansas (Mr. Moore) and other…”

“today along with the gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. McCarthy) and the gentleman from Kansas (Mr. Moore) and other cosponsors, I introduce a bill that will put at least one Federal prosecutor in every State. There is no question that our Nation is facing a growing scourge of gun violence that is holding an increasing number of our communities under siege. Crimes committed with firearms are among the most heinous and should be prosecuted as quickly and forcefully as possible. While the Federal government has in the past approached the problem of gun violence by passing new Federal laws and putting more cops on the beat, there is nothing that can be done to attack the problem if our prosecutors do not have the resources they need to enforce existing laws. Simply put, we must give them the resources they need to fully enforce existing gun laws. That is why we have introduced the Gun Crime Prosecution Act of 1999. This legislation will give every United States Attorney for each judicial district an additional Assistant U.S. Attorney position whose sole purpose would be the prosecution of crimes committed with a firearm.”