On the recordMarch 10, 2021
I thank the gentleman for yielding. You know, our friends on the other side of the aisle are deadly wrong. That is the tragedy of their argument, because the Second Amendment does not prohibit regulation. It never did. And our Founding Fathers regulated guns as early as the beginning of this Nation. And so I rise in support of H.R. 8, and indicate while the COVID-19 pandemic dominated news headlines in 2020, the number of shootings surged in many communities across America. Our public health and emergency resources have been straining to recover from the coronavirus, and budgets are crunched nationwide, and, as well, gun violence is rising. It is important to note because approximately 80 percent of firearms used for criminal purposes are obtained without a background check. We must strengthen our firearms background checks and close dangerous gaps, such as the online sale and gun show loopholes. In the data that we were able to secure, there was nearly one mass shooting per day in the United States: 355 mass shootings in 2018. We realize that since December 2012 there have been at least 1,518 mass shootings with at least 1,715 people killed. Each day an average of 92 Americans are victims of gun violence, resulting in more than 33,000 deaths. And I wonder why our friends could not feel the pain of the loss of guns being transferred illegally or improperly? I was here for Columbine. That happened on April 20, 1999. High school students losing their lives.…
