Sheila Jackson Lee: “Let me just say this: I am not sure if the gentleman from Texas, a dear friend, was asking us to get rid of the no-fly…”

“Let me just say this: I am not sure if the gentleman from Texas, a dear friend, was asking us to get rid of the no-fly list or the watch list. Our point today, Mr. Speaker, is very narrow. We are just asking that terrorists not be able to walk into a gun shop and buy a gun. This is a loophole that is most glaring. Eighty percent of the American people believe that this is impossible; it must not be true. We are trying to prevent suspected terrorists from walking into a gun store and buying a deadly weapon. The investigation, tragically, in California is not yet finished, so we don't have the final answer as to what would have prevented that. But it is astonishing that the loophole has allowed more than 2,000 suspects on the FBI terrorist watch list to buy guns in the U.S. over the past 11 years. When I started this debate, I was happy that we had come to the floor to deal with Homeland Security bills. The American people want the homeland safe and secure. They don't want demagoguery. They want safety and security. Legislation blocking terrorists from getting guns makes America no more safer and secure than apple pie. This is a time when more than 90 percent of all suspected terrorists who tried to buy guns in America walked away and bought them. They got the weapon they wanted. This is not criminals, gangs, or others. We are dealing with those individuals who are terrorists. They have the right to get a gun.…”