[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 116 (Wednesday, August 17, 1994)]
[House]
[Page H]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: August 17, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
 URGING MEMBERS' SUPPORT FOR THE OMNIBUS VIOLENT CRIME CONTROL AND LAW 
                        ENFORCEMENT ACT OF 1994

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from California [Ms. Eshoo] is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Ms. ESHOO. Mr. Speaker, I rise this evening to urge my colleagues in 
the House of Representatives to support the Omnibus Violent Crime 
Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, Americans know today that this 
is called the crime bill, and insist that this bill retain the major 
provisions of penalties and prevention, and, Mr. Speaker, it must 
include a ban on assault weapons.
  Mr. Speaker, as Members of this House, we know the cost of crime in 
our districts. We see the cost in broken homes, we see the cost in 
broken bodies, we see the cost of the emotional and physical trauma of 
the people that we are privileged to represent.
  In my district, Mr. Speaker, there is a community by the name of East 
Palo Alto, in California. In 1992 this small community beat out the 
District of Columbia as being the murder capital of our Nation, per 
capita.
  Today people are still frightened to leave their homes. There are 
many other parts of my district that are very well known for their 
wealth, but this is still part of the 14th Congressional District of 
California.
  Mr. Speaker, just last night this small community of 24,000 people 
endured an armed robbery, a grocery store shooting, and a shooting in a 
local tenant complex. We must take every step possible to stop this 
random, senseless violence which plagues our neighborhoods and our 
communities, and we can do this by passing the crime bill, which will 
ban 19 specific assault weapons. These weapons, which include the 
Streetsweeper, which, by the way, was invented for use in South Africa 
for crowd control, at, thank God, another time in our history, are 
designed to kill people, not wildlife, not targets, but people, human 
beings, and now small children riding their bikes to and from school.
  Mr. Speaker, what has this country come to? Does the NRA have no 
shame? They don't want prevention money in a bill to prevent crime, and 
they fight and pay for Members here to vote their way to continue to 
have these assault weapons on our street. I do not think they are on 
the side of America, and I do not think that is American. That is not 
something I ever want to stand next to.

  Mr. Speaker, I am proud to have supported the rule last week, and I 
want to make sure that Members stand next to this abiding principle. If 
there was a time during this second year of the 103rd Congress that I 
believe the American people felt that their voices had been heard, that 
a special interest had been passed over, it was when we voted on the 
assault weapon ban. I think we need to climb that mountain again this 
week, and I think we need to stand tall and prove to the American 
people that our own political careers are not what we are here for, but 
the oath of office that we took when we stood on the floor of this 
House in this Chamber, that it was for them that we have come here. 
They deserve better.
  Mr. Speaker, we had a press conference yesterday, and they were all 
women, women Senators and women House Members. We heard the stories of 
constituents who have lost their spouses as a result of these assault 
weapons being sold like candy on our streets, available to anyone that 
wants to use them for whatever insane purpose they may have in mind.

                              {time}  1900

  I wish that the NRA was there. I wish that they could have stepped up 
to a microphone and given an answer to these citizens as to why they 
would lobby the way they do.
  So, America, do not be fooled. This is not about pork. It is about 
another kind of pork. Prevention is not pork.
  If you talk about community centers and what we can do for our 
children of this Nation, I know what I gave to my children, and you 
know what? It worked. That may be pork in Beverly Hills, but it is not 
pork in my community of East Palo Alto. Whether they are black or brown 
or yellow or white, regardless of what their background is, our 
children deserve a vote that is going to offer them the kind of 
prevention that law enforcement from around the Nation have come 
together and have come to the Capitol this week and said, ``This is 
what we need.''
  Make no mistake about it, this word pork has had some contagiousness 
to it. But examine it, America, and listen to really what this is all 
about. It is about the money that is made on assault weapons. We want 
to ban them. That must be part of the crime bill. I urge my colleagues 
to put aside partisanship and what they think is best for their 
political careers. Do what we were supposed to do in coming here and 
taking our oath of office. Stand next to every American. Do the right 
thing and pass a bill that is going to do well by every citizen in 
America.

                          ____________________