Anthony Gonzalez: “While I will not be supporting this bill today, I do want to commend my colleagues for bringing this debate to floor.…”

“While I will not be supporting this bill today, I do want to commend my colleagues for bringing this debate to floor. Mr. Jeffries, Mr. Richmond, and many others who I have watched on television back in my office have spoken with a conviction and a truth that cannot be denied. As a former professional and college football player, I have been hearing these painful stories for my entire adult life from my own teammates. I have seen it myself when I went out in the community with some of my African-American friends. While I can never fully understand its effects or its impact, I know it is real. We have to address it around our dinner tables, in our communities, and here on the House floor. Black lives have always mattered. I also know a few other important things. Number one, the American people are starving for us to work together in a bipartisan way to get a passable bill on the President's desk and signed into law. This has been one of the most brutal times in our life. First the coronavirus, then the economy, so much uncertainty, and finally the brutality enacted on George Floyd as he was murdered on the streets of Minneapolis. The legitimate protest movements getting overshadowed and overrun by anarchists who simply wish to destroy America and burn it all down. This has been a brutal summer, and it is only June. Number two, with very few exceptions, this House is united in wanting to deliver for the country.…”