Political Quotes

“On Tuesday, as they were leaving football practice at Roxborough High School in Philadelphia, five teenage boys were shot. Four survived the horrific shooting, but 14-year-old Nicolas Elizalde was killed. God bless him. Earlier that day, I stood with Representative Scanlon, the Giffords organization, and the community to advocate for gun violence prevention. One of the advocates in our audience was a grandmother like me. Only hours later, it was her grandson, Nicolas, who was gunned down leaving football practice. I cannot imagine her pain. Nicolas is the 23rd child to be shot and murdered in Philadelphia this year. There is a frightening trend of far too many illicit guns ending up in the hands of teenagers. This must end. We need serious solutions, not finger-pointing, to address inner-city gun violence. We cannot simply out-police loose gun laws that contribute to teenagers getting their hands on guns and murdering one another. So, while this may be the final day of our session, I will not stop working on this issue. I will be sending a letter to ATF requesting an increased focus on ending the pipeline of guns to our children's hands. ____________________”