[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 51 (Tuesday, April 20, 2004)]
[House]
[Page H2166]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                            ASSAULT WEAPONS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. McCarthy) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mrs. McCARTHY of New York. Mr. Speaker, in 146 days assault weapons 
will be back on our streets. In 146 days drug lords, criminals, cop 
killers will be able to buy the gun of their choice. If this House is 
not allowed to bring up the renewal of assault weapons ban, in 146 days 
we will be going back 10 years in time.
  We have proof that, since assault weapons have been off the streets, 
many lives have been saved.
  Unfortunately, today is the fifth anniversary of the Columbine High 
School shooting. One of the weapons used in the shooting that day was 
the Tec-9. This weapon of war allowed two high school students to fire 
55 rounds into students and teachers in a matter of minutes. Thirteen 
people were killed that day, 21 wounded.
  The gun did what it was designed to do. It is an excellent product. 
It is a product that is out there to shoot rapidly, to kill as many 
people as possible in a short period of time. This gun did its job that 
day. In 146 days we are going to allow these guns back on the street.
  These are the guns that we see being used over in Iraq, the same as 
an AK-47, the Uzis, the guns that were on our streets 10 years ago. And 
now we are going to go back and allow those guns back on the streets?
  Where is the common sense? Gun owners across this country agree that 
these guns should not be allowed on the streets. Our police throughout 
this Nation have enough on their hands trying to find the terrorists 
that are supposedly in this country; and yet this administration, this 
House, will do nothing.
  President Bush in 2000 said that he would sign a bill to renew the 
assault weapons if it came onto his desk. The President has been 
extremely effective. Every bill that has come through this House has 
landed on his desk. But that is because he worked it.
  It is going to be up to the American people to start e-mailing their 
Congressmen, their Senators, the Speaker of the House, everyone, to 
allow this bill to come back on the floor for a vote.
  Mother's Day in 2000, we had over 750,000 moms, dads, uncles, victims 
gathered down here in Washington to try to do something about gun 
violence in this country.

                              {time}  1930

  This Mother's Day, again, the million moms are coming down here to 
have their voices heard. We are going to be doing this all over the 
Nation. Again, the American people have the opportunity to make a 
difference, but you cannot just talk about it. You have to really get 
out there and say, enough is enough.
  We should be having an assault on the assault weapons. The millions 
of dollars that are spent every single year on gun violence in this 
country could be used towards our schools. The billions of dollars that 
it costs this country on health care because of gun violence could be 
used towards our health care system.
  One person can make a difference, but it is a lot easier when that 
one becomes two and three and then thousands. We can do this. Many of 
us here on the House floor will fight for you, but we have to outnumber 
the NRA. Believe me, the numbers are small. They talk about 4 million 
NRA members. There are only actually 435,000 of them that have a grip 
on this House. Our nurses across the country, our doctors, if we only 
took the health care providers, we could make a difference.
  I ask the American people for help. It is 146 days before the assault 
weapons go back on our streets. Is that what we want in our 
communities? Is that what we want for our children of this Nation? Is 
that the bloodshed we want to see in this country?

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