Political Quotes

“I rise today in utter amazement that we are even going to consider repealing the assault weapons ban. Here are provisions of law designed to keep weapons of war off of our streets and to prevent citizens from being slaughtered and our law enforcement officials from being outgunned. Yet the majority party insists we would be better off without the ban. I find that difficult to believe. Mr. Speaker, when President Bush banned the importation of assault weapons in 1989, the number of such rifles traced to crime dropped by 45 percent. In the year of the ban on domestic assault weapons, the effect of such attacks has dropped an additional 18 percent. Despite these encouraging results, assault weapons still pose a major danger to Americans, particularly to our law enforcement officers, and I for one cannot turn my back on the valiant police officers in my district in New York City and Long Island. Mr. Speaker, I beg my colleagues, do not defile the memory of those who died in the massacre on the Long Island Railroad. Do not sell your vote for the blood money of the NRA. Listen to the painful and courageous cries of the victims, your constituents and our police officers, law enforcement officials, and not to the special interests and the blood money of the NRA.”