[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 47 (Monday, March 19, 2018)]
[House]
[Page H1656]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              NEVER AGAIN

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Pennsylvania (Mr. Fitzpatrick) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. FITZPATRICK. Mr. Speaker, over 4 weeks have passed since our 
Nation suffered an unspeakable tragedy in Parkland, Florida, where we 
lost 17 souls that we cannot get back.
  Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record the names of these young, brave 
souls who will move this country to act to protect other young students 
across this Nation.

       Alyssa Alhadeff, Scott Beigel, Martin Duque Anguiano, 
     Nicholas Dworet, Aaron Feis, Jaime Guttenberg, Chris Hixon, 
     Luke Hoyer, Cara Loughran, Gina Montalto, Joaquin Oliver, 
     Alaina Petty, Meadow Pollack, Helena Ramsay, Alex Schachter, 
     Carmen Schentrup, Peter Wang.

  Mr. FITZPATRICK. Mr. Speaker, I have met with the brave students of 
Parkland. I have also met with the parent of one of those lost souls.
  I have met with students and parents and teachers alike in my own 
district in Pennsylvania. I have seen the fear and the anxiety in their 
demeanor. I have seen the tears in their eyes. They are asking for this 
Congress to do what past Congresses have failed to do.
  Mr. Speaker, there were countless missed signals and missed 
opportunities that could have prevented this tragedy from happening. 
However, this is not the time for finger-pointing; this is a time for 
healing, and, more importantly, this is a time for action.
  We were elected to Congress not to hide from tough decisions, not to 
be afraid to tackle tough problems. Mr. Speaker, we were elected to 
lead, and lead we must.
  As a 14-year FBI agent, I carried a weapon on my ankle every day in 
order to save lives and keep people safe. And as a Federal gun crimes 
prosecutor, I prosecuted and imprisoned those who committed violent gun 
crimes in order to protect people, in my role as a prosecutor, and keep 
our communities safe.
  Keeping our communities safe and protecting the Second Amendment are 
not mutually exclusive concepts. We can advance both and preserve both 
simultaneously. All we need to do, Mr. Speaker, is be willing to do 
what every American wants us to do, which is put away ideology and come 
together in a bipartisan fashion.
  Of all the responsibilities we have, of all of the responsibilities 
we have, we have no higher responsibility as elected officials, and as 
citizens, than to protect our kids.
  After the terror attacks of September 11, we said: Never again. Never 
again will we allow terrorists to seize control of a cockpit and turn a 
commercial airliner into a guided missile.
  What did we do? We created the Department of Homeland Security; we 
deployed a Federal Air Marshal Service, the likes of which this country 
has never seen; we fortified our cockpits; we deployed state-of-the-art 
screening equipment across our Nation's 450-plus airports across the 
country. We said: Never again.
  I am calling on my colleagues to have the same response to school 
shootings: Never again.
  Mr. Speaker, the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus, of which I am a 
proud member, has developed a well-thought-out list of 10 legislative 
proposals that help us achieve this goal, to protect our kids, to say 
never again to this needless violence.
  I urge my colleagues in this House, Democrat and Republican alike, to 
show leadership in tackling these tough issues. Call for a floor vote 
and support these bipartisan proposals. Let's do it for our kids. They 
need us now more than ever.

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