[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 182 (Wednesday, November 8, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7118-S7119]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mrs. FEINSTEIN (for herself, Mr. Blumenthal, Mr. Murphy, Mr. 
        Schumer, Mr. Durbin, Mrs. Murray, Mr. Reed, Mr. Carper, Mr. 
        Menendez, Mr. Cardin, Ms. Klobuchar, Mr. Whitehouse, Mrs. 
        Gillibrand, Mr. Franken, Mr. Schatz, Ms. Hirono, Ms. Warren, 
        Mr. Markey, Mr. Booker, Mr. Van Hollen, Ms. Duckworth, Ms. 
        Harris, Mr. Casey, and Mr. Sanders):
  S. 2095. A bill to regulate assault weapons, to ensure that the right 
to keep and bear arms is not unlimited, and for other purposes; to the 
Committee on the Judiciary.
  Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President, for the last month, in the wake of the 
tragedy in Las Vegas, I have been asking my colleagues to show some 
courage, stand up to the gun lobby, and take weapons of war off of our 
streets.
  Now, we have all had to bear witness to another tragedy. Three days 
ago, in Sutherland Springs, Texas, a single person armed with an 
assault rifle murdered 26 people and left another 20 injured. This 
gunman walked into a church and opened fire on peaceful churchgoers, 
including children as young as 18-months old. A helpless toddler who 
barely learned to walk. Eight members of a single family were also 
lost. Eight.
  The shooter had 15 magazine clips of ammunition--almost 450 rounds--
and used all of them. Ask yourself: how would you feel in those 
moments, with hundreds of bullets flying around and not knowing whether 
you will live or die, or whether you will be able to protect your 
child? Think about those children--terrified, witnessing their families 
being shot while in a place of worship. It is time that we ask what 
this says about us as a country. And what does this say about us to the 
rest of the world.
  In 1996, after a mass shooting where a gunman opened fire on tourists 
at the sea side in Port Arthur, killing 35 people, Australia acted 
swiftly. Twelve days later, Australia's government enacted sweeping gun 
control measures. Since then, there has not been a single mass shooting 
in that country since. Mass shootings in America, however, have become 
common place. It is no longer a matter of if, but when, another one 
will happen.
  If there are now mass shootings in churches, where are we safe 
anymore? Not concerts, not schools, not holiday parties. Just a month 
ago, we experienced the worst mass shooting in our nation's history in 
Las Vegas. A gunman opened fire with multiple semi-automatic assault 
rifles that he had legally transformed into automatic weapons, killing 
more than fifty people and leaving more than 500 wounded. Among the 
victims were mothers, fathers, brothers, and sisters.
  There was Kelsey Meadows, 28 years old, who after graduating from the 
University of California, Fresno, returned to her hometown of Taft, 
California to be a substitute teacher at her alma mater, Taft Union 
High School. She was described by the high school principal as ``smart, 
compassionate, and kind'' with a ``sweet spirit and a love for 
children.'' Her entire family and community was completely devastated. 
Kelsey could have been any of us attending that concert. My own 
daughter told me after the Las Vegas shooting that she was supposed to 
be in the city that evening, but her plans had to change. It was only a 
little more than a year before the Las Vegas shooting that we 
experienced what had then been the worst mass shooting in our nation's 
history.
  That was when 49 people who were enjoying an evening of dancing with 
friends and loved ones were massacred in Orlando. Victims in Orlando 
included 22-year old Luis Velma who was working at Universal Studios on 
a Harry Potter ride. There was also Eddie Justice, a 30-year old 
accountant who texted his mother from the shooting, telling her: 
``Mommy I love you.'' ``In club they shooting.'' ``He has us.''
  I encourage every member of this chamber to imagine receiving those 
text messages from their son or daughter.
  And just six months before that, 14 people were killed and more than 
20 injured in San Bernardino, California at a work holiday party.
  Among the victims was a father of six. A mother of three. A woman who 
was eight when she and her mother left Vietnam for a better life in 
America. The youngest victim was 26, and the oldest was 60.
  The list goes on and on. Eight murdered at the Umpqua Community 
College in Roseburg, Oregon. A police officer and two innocent citizens 
brutally murdered by a man with an AK-47 style weapon in Colorado 
Springs. In 2013, 12 people fatally shot at the Navy Yard, less than 
two miles from where I stand today. And on December 14, 2012, 20 
children had their lives taken at Sandy Hook Elementary School. 
Children.
  Once again, I encourage every member of this body to imagine dropping 
their young child off at elementary school this morning, only to learn 
a few hours later that a gunman walked into that school and tried to 
kill as many people as possible. That is something we could have 
prevented. But we did not. Instead, we have made it easier for those 
with mental health issues to get guns. I often remember Sandy Hook and 
think about how we let these families down. We failed them. And sadly, 
the mass shootings have continued to get worse in terms of frequency 
and lives lost. And I will not sit by while these killings continue.
  That is why today I am joining with my colleagues to reintroduce 
legislation to prohibit the sale, transfer, manufacture, and 
importation of assault weapons and large capacity ammunition feeding 
devices that can accept more than ten rounds. I will keep doing this. 
This legislation must constantly be before this body until it is 
enacted. Every member must make a decision whether to stand up or let 
the National Rifle Association win again.
  This legislation is not perfect. But it is part of the solution. We 
must start with reducing the supply of the weapons of war that are used 
to take the lives of our loved ones.
  The deadly assault weapons used by the attackers in each of the 
devastating shootings I have mentioned would have been banned under the 
Assault Weapons Ban bill that I am introducing today. The new 
legislation is based off of legislation we previously introduced 
following the horrific attack committed against young school

[[Page S7119]]

children in Newtown, Connecticut. It will provide much needed fixes to 
the law to keep our communities safer, while also protecting the rights 
of lawful gun owners.
  Back when we enacted the 1994 legislation, that law prohibited 
semiautomatic weapons with a detachable magazine and at least two 
military characteristics. The bill we are introducing today tightens 
this test to prohibit semiautomatic rifles, handguns, and shotguns that 
can accept a detachable magazine and have one military characteristic. 
This is the standard employed in my home state of California--and it 
works.
  Based on the 10 years of experience from the 1994 law, we learned 
that the ``two-characteristic'' test was too easy to ``work around'': a 
manufacturer could simply remove one of the characteristics, and the 
firearm was legal. The bill we are introducing today will close that 
loophole. The bill also prohibits ``bullet buttons'', a feature that 
certain manufacturers developed to evade restrictions on detachable 
ammunition magazines. In San Bernardino, the assault rifles originally 
contained ``bullet buttons'' for their magazine clips--which enabled 
them to avoid California's assault weapons ban. Our bill contains 
language to close this loophole.
  This bill also prohibits ``bump-fire stocks'', which, as we saw in 
Las Vegas, allows individuals to convert semi-automatic rifles to 
function like a machine gun.
  Other changes to the 1994 bill include updating the list of 
specifically-named military-style firearms that are prohibited, to 
account for new models developed since 1994; prohibiting semiautomatic 
rifles and handguns with a fixed magazine that can accept more than 10 
rounds; adding a ban on the importation of assault weapons and large-
capacity magazines; and eliminating the 10-year sunset that allowed the 
original law to expire. Importantly, our legislation also prohibits 
large-capacity ammunition feeding devices capable of accepting more 
than 10 rounds.
  Now, let me tell you what the bill will not do.
  It will not affect hunting or sporting firearms. Instead, the bill 
protects hunters and sportsmen by exempting 2,258 firearms used for 
hunting or sporting purposes and exempting antique, manually-operated, 
and permanently disabled weapons. The bill protects the rights of 
existing gun owners by grandfathering weapons legally possessed on the 
date of enactment. The bill also imposes a safe storage requirement for 
grandfathered firearms to ensure they don't get into the hands of 
people who would be prohibited from possessing them.
  While the bill permits the continued possession of high-capacity 
ammunition magazines that are legally possessed on the date of 
enactment, it would ban the future transfer of these magazines.
  Finally, the bill allows local jurisdictions to use existing federal 
Byrne JAG grant money to support voluntary buy-back programs for 
grandfathered assault weapons and large-capacity ammunition feeding 
devices.
  Opponents charge that this legislation impinges upon rights protected 
by the Second Amendment. I disagree.
  The Supreme Court expressly held in District of Columbia v. Heller 
that ``the right secured by the Second Amendment is not unlimited.'' 
The Court made it clear that reasonable regulations are allowable under 
the Constitution.
  This bill is simply establishing reasonable regulations for what 
types of weapons may be sold and used--individuals should not own a 
nuclear weapon, they should not own a rocket launcher, and they should 
not own a military-style assault weapon.
  In fact, a number of courts have considered challenges to assault 
weapons bans. To date, every court that has considered a ban on assault 
weapons or large capacity magazines has upheld the law as reasonable.
  In fact, the D.C. Circuit, the Second Circuit, the Fourth Circuit, 
the Seventh Circuit, the Ninth Circuit, as well as a number of federal 
district courts have all upheld laws like the one we are proposing.
  Importantly, the Supreme Court let stand the ruling out of the 
Seventh Circuit upholding a local ban on assault weapons and high 
capacity magazines from the City of Highland Park, Illinois.
  Mr. President, I believe very strongly that the most important duty 
that government has to its citizens is to protect the nation and the 
safety of its people.
  When 26 churchgoers are killed in cold blood with their loved ones in 
a Baptist Church on a Sunday morning, we fail them by not making sure 
that they can worship in peace.
  When 58 people attending a concert in Las Vegas lose their lives 
because a madman was able to use laws on the books to make his semi-
automatic rifle into a machinegun, all of those who sit in this chamber 
have failed them.
  When 14 people are gunned down during a holiday party by those with 
assault rifles that let off 65-75 rounds within minutes, our government 
has failed them.
  When 20 elementary school children are slaughtered by an assault 
weapon, America has failed them.
  The firearms used in these massacres are weapons of war. Let me say 
it as plainly as I can: weapons of war do not belong on our streets, in 
our churches, in our schools, in our malls, in our theaters, or in our 
workplaces.
  Now, I am under no illusions--I know that the gun lobby has a 
stranglehold on this building. I know we got 40 votes in 2013, and I 
know Republicans control the Senate today. But I also know this was 
hard-fought in 1994, and we prevailed--with Republican support--and it 
was a bipartisan vote. I still believe that, at some point, Americans 
will come together and realize that we can be a nation that protects 
its people from the savagery of these weapons.
  I urge my colleagues to support this bill. I thank the chair, and I 
yield the floor.

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