Political Quotes

“Madam Chair, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Chair, at this time I would like to address a concern that has been raised by one section of the bill that is unrelated to the changes to current law to address the Charleston loophole. Section 3 of the bill replaces outdated and offensive terminology in the categories of individuals who are ineligible to purchase or possess firearms under current law. Among those included, there are individuals subject to such prohibitions because, as stated by the current law, they are ``adjudicated as a mental defective.'' At the Judiciary Committee's markup of the bill, we agreed with our ranking member, Representative Collins, to replace this offensive language and to insert different terminology in the bill as a placeholder as we work to develop alternative language that does not alter the scope of who is included in these prohibitions and to work with stakeholders who have an interest in how this would be accomplished. We have heard from various advocates in the mental health, disability rights, and veterans communities who have expressed their desire to develop an acceptable alternative. We agree. Yesterday, the Veterans of Foreign Wars brought their concerns related to this issue to our attention. The VFW agrees that the current terminology is archaic but is concerned about a potential unintended consequence of replacing it.…”