On the recordJune 6, 2022
Madam President, like so many people in Texas and across the country, I can't stop thinking about the 19 children and the two teachers who lost their lives in Uvalde, TX. Over the last several days, 21 families have started burying their loved ones. This tight- knit community of 15,000 people 60 miles from the U.S.-Mexico border is grieving the loss of classmates, playmates, friends, neighbors, colleagues, and fellow church members. As grief turns to anger and anger turns to action, everyone is asking the question--the logical question--how do we stop these sort of things from happening again? Well, I think that is the right question. That is the question that has been on my mind and dominating conversations with my colleagues the last couple of weeks. This is a big diverse country. There are a lot of differences regionally, culturally, and the like. Each of us have ideas about what would work best, but that is the genius of our Federal system, one that Louis Brandeis called the ``laboratories of democracy'' because ``one size fits all'' is not necessarily always the right solution. But those of us who work here in the Senate know this is not just about our goals or ideals; it is about what was once called the ``art of the possible.'' Perfect bills exist only in our imagination and we have to be realistic about what can pass both Chambers of Congress and get the President's signature. And we know it is not easy by design.…





