[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 95 (Wednesday, June 15, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3979-S3980]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
MASS SHOOTING IN ORLANDO
Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, Marcelle and I, along with all Vermonters,
were devastated by the news of the attack in Orlando, and our hearts go
out to the victims and their families. All Americans deserve to feel
safe in their communities regardless of their race, age, sex,
ethnicity, religion, or sexual orientation. In the wake of the worst
mass shooting in American history, all of us must stand with the people
of Orlando who have been so shaken by this hateful act of terrorism and
violence. And in particular, as we celebrate Pride Month, we must stand
with and support the LGBT community, both in Orlando and throughout the
Nation.
We are so thankful for the law enforcement officers and first
responders who rushed to the scene in the middle of the night to
confront the killer and save lives. We also are grateful for the work
of the doctors and nurses who fought and continue to fight to save even
more. My wife, Marcelle, is a registered surgical nurse, and we have
been deeply moved to see the outpouring of support by people across
Florida and the country who are donating blood and doing what they can
to support the victims and their families.
In the wake of tragedies like this, whether the victims are members
of the LGBT community, African-American church parishioners, first
graders in an elementary school, college students, moviegoers, or
others in our community, we are called as Americans to come together in
solidarity. We come together in grief and in shock. We come together in
support of the victims, their families, law enforcement personnel and
first responders, and the entire community. And we come together to try
and find a way to prevent further acts of senseless violence. We are at
our best as a nation when we come together. When we are united in
strength and in courageous acts of selflessness and kindness, our
country can move forward with a greater sense of purpose and hope.
We must not allow ourselves to be divided by the bigoted actions of a
murderer or by any fear that the killer sought to foment. He took an
assault rifle into a nightclub, one that was known as a special place
in Orlando's LGBT community. He fired on a crowd of innocent, unarmed
people. This man was no fighter and certainly no soldier. This was
either the act of a murderous bigot trying to shroud his hatred by
professing allegiance to ISIL or the actions of a cowardly terrorist
seeking to paralyze and divide us with fear--or perhaps both. In either
case, we cannot let his heinous acts lead us to turn on one another.
Some are already using this horrific attack as an opportunity to
further divide us. The Republican Party's presumptive Presidential
nominee continues to peddle his corrosive rhetoric of fear by proposing
to ban all Muslims from entering the country. This week he went even
further by suggested that the entire Muslim American community was
somehow complicit in this heinous act. This is irresponsible fear-
mongering--plain and simple. It is guilt by association. And it makes
us less safe. We should all condemn this bigotry and reject attempts to
foment fear and hatred. We are stronger and safer when we reject such
attempts to divide us.
The Republican standard bearer has also questioned the motivations
and patriotism of the President of the United States. These
insinuations are dangerous. They are beyond the pale, and I reject them
emphatically and categorically. I call on every Member of this body to
do the same. We are a better nation than this.
The American people are rightfully demanding action instead of
rhetoric. They are tired of hearing that the tragedy in Orlando and the
countless others we have endured are not about our gun laws. We must
recognize that we have a security weakness in this country and ISIL is
exploiting it. Our enemies know that in the United States you can go
online or to a gun show and buy a gun. You don't need to have
identification. No background check will be run. You can simply acquire
a semiautomatic weapon that can kill dozens of people in a matter of
minutes.
We must have universal background checks. That is simply common
sense. We have had background checks for decades. I am among millions
of responsible gun owners in this country who undergo background checks
when we purchase a firearm. And, like millions of responsible gun
owners, I understand that this check is necessary to help keep guns out
of the hands of criminals and terrorists. It is common sense that we
need to close the loopholes that allow people to evade background
checks altogether. And we must also make sure that the background
checks are effective. That means giving law enforcement the power to
stop
[[Page S3980]]
a suspected terrorist, or someone who has recently been under
investigation for terrorism, from buying a gun. It is also common sense
that assault weapons designed for the battlefield have no place on our
streets, in our schools, in our churches, or in our communities. I have
moved and supported an assault weapons ban for this simple reason.
These changes make sense, and they fix glaring vulnerabilities in our
system. This is not about politics. This is about keeping Americans
safe. This is about stepping up and taking action and not just
resigning ourselves to the repeated call for moments of silence,
tragedy after tragedy. I am a responsible gun owner, and I do not take
this issue lightly. I have fought for years to pass these commonsense
measures, and I will continue to do so.
Americans have shown throughout the course of history that we can
live up to the principles of freedom, equality, and liberty that have
guided us for so long. Now is the time to stand defiantly against the
petty politics of fear. Despite what others may say, we are a great
nation. Now is the time for Congress to act to pass commonsense
measures that have languished for too long and could save American
lives.
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