[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 162 (Monday, December 17, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8049-S8050]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      NEWTOWN, CONNECTICUT TRAGEDY

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, this afternoon the families of Newtown, CT, 
are burying two 6-year-old boys--Noah Pozner and Jack Pinto. Noah 
turned 6 last month. Even though he was only 6, Jack was a New York 
Giants fan.
  In the days to come, many of their classmates will also be laid to 
rest--the victims of a tragedy too terrible to comprehend. Twenty 
little girls and boys, twenty tiny daughters and sons, sisters and 
brothers, friends and playmates, twenty children who will never grow up 
to learn to drive, go on a first date or graduate from high school, 
twenty 6- and 7-year-olds who will never have the chance to fall in 
love, get married or have children of their own: Noah and Jack, 
Charlotte, Daniel, Olivia, Josephine, Ana, Dylan, Madeline, Catherine, 
Chase, Avielle, Jesse, Grace, Emilie, Caroline, Jessica, Benjamin, 
Allison, and James.
  No words of condolence could possibly ease the pain of families who 
lost cherished little children, but I hope it is some small comfort 
that the entire Nation mourns with them. My heart and warm wishes go 
out to all those affected by Friday's massacre. My thoughts are with 
the students and faculty of Sandy Hook who witnessed such unspeakable 
violence.
  Newtown and the Nation have seen great evil. We have also seen 
incredible bravery.
  In her final act on Earth, 27-year-old Victoria Soto hid the children 
of her first grade class in closets and cabinets and then sacrificed 
herself to save them.
  Dawn Hochsprung, the principal, forcibly--as the word goes--attacked 
the assailant, and he killed her.

[[Page S8050]]

  Mary Sherlach, Lauren Rousseau, Rachel Davino, and Anne Marie Murphy 
also died trying to safeguard the children in their care.
  These six educators devoted their lives to teaching Newtown's 
children how to read, how to add and subtract, and how to be good boys 
and girls. They gave their lives to keep these children safe. They are 
a source of hope in a hopeless situation.
  I commend the teachers of Sandy Hook Elementary who didn't hesitate 
when they saw danger coming. Some barricaded their students inside 
classrooms or hid them in closets, preventing an even greater loss of 
life.
  I thank the first responders who rushed into the school, despite the 
danger and horrors around them, knowing they had a job to do.
  It is hard to comprehend this type of tragedy, let alone recover from 
it. But in the words of Helen Keller: ``Although the world is full of 
suffering, it is also full of the overcoming of it.''
  As the families of Newtown mourn, all America mourns with them, and 
we will stand with them as they overcome this suffering and begin the 
healing process.
  Part of the healing process will require Congress to examine what can 
be done to prevent more tragedies such as the ones in Newtown, CT; 
Aurora, CO; Oak Creek, WI; and Portland, OR. These are fairly recent.
  As President Obama said last night, no one law can erase evil. No 
policy can prevent a determined madman from committing a senseless act 
of violence. But we need to accept the reality that we are not doing 
enough to protect our citizens.
  In the coming days and weeks, we will engage in a meaningful 
conversation and thoughtful debate about how to change laws and culture 
that allows this violence to continue to grow. We have no greater 
responsibility than keeping safe our most vulnerable and our most 
precious resource--our children. Every idea should be on the table as 
we discuss how best to do just that.

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