[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 44 (Tuesday, March 9, 2021)]
[House]
[Pages H1182-H1185]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  THE RIGHT OF THE PEOPLE TO KEEP AND BEAR ARMS SHALL NOT BE INFRINGED

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of 
January 4, 2021, the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Biggs) is recognized 
until 10 p.m. as the designee of the minority leader.
  Mr. BIGGS. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend from Arizona for his very 
informative speech here about our coming, looming economic issues.
  Mr. Speaker, for the last 2 weeks, the majority has attacked the 
First Amendment; and now they are attacking the Second Amendment. The 
Second Amendment clearly states the right of the people to keep and 
bear arms shall not be infringed. And as Justice Scalia noted in his 
decision in Heller, the Second Amendment does not give Americans a 
right; it protects a preexisting right. Hence, the phrase, ``Shall not 
be infringed.''

                              {time}  2130

  Our theme for the next 30 minutes will be about H.R. 8 and the damage 
it will do to the Second Amendment which is, as Justice Scalia noted, a 
preexisting right.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Hice).
  Mr. HICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend from Arizona for 
yielding.
  Mr. Speaker, we are all concerned with this bill, H.R. 8. And the 
reality is, the big money donors and powerful special interest groups 
behind the Democratic Party for a long time have sought to undermine, 
restrict, and even eliminate the Second Amendment rights of Americans.
  With the Democratic Party now calling the shots here in Washington, 
quite frankly, the majority party is not even trying to hide their true 
agenda.
  Masquerading as supposedly good-faith proposals to end gun violence, 
what they are really putting in place are the stepping-stones to 
creating a national firearm registry and eventually even confiscating 
firearms.
  H.R. 8 is being considered later this week, and it would implement a 
universal background check system. The majority claims that this is an 
obvious solution to gun violence, but that is simply not the case at 
all.
  Gun violence in America is complex, and so are the solutions. But the 
overwhelming majority of criminals would not be stopped by H.R. 8 
whatsoever. In fact, the Justice Department itself, by its own data, 
says that 75 percent of criminals in prison who possessed a firearm 
obtained it through theft, the black market, or family and friends.
  Secondly, we know that the vast majority of mass shooters would have 
been able to pass background checks. This bill does not in any way end 
gun violence.
  But what it does do is create a national gun registry that will 
eventually be used against law-abiding Americans.
  Without a permanent database of who owns a firearm, the Federal 
Government would not be able to determine whether a private firearm 
transfer took place with the required background check.
  So that brings to us the real aim of this bill, H.R. 8. It paves the 
way for this database to be used at a later date in a national gun 
confiscation program.
  Mr. Speaker, don't take my word for it.
  Even President Biden, himself, in August 2019, said that he does 
support confiscating assault weapons which he would consider AR-15 
style.
  So, Mr. Speaker, the threat is real. We are in a major fight for 
those who are trying to dismantle and eliminate the Second Amendment. 
We are not blowing smoke here. H.R. 8 is a massive move in that 
direction, and we stand here tonight to say: No, we are not going to 
allow that to happen on our watch.
  We have to be vigilant, and we have to stand guard for our freedoms.
  Again, Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend, the gentleman from Arizona, 
for yielding to me.
  Mr. BIGGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield to my friend from Ohio (Mr. 
Davidson).
  Mr. DAVIDSON. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding. And I 
thank this body for still continuing the tradition of this opportunity 
to speak and have our voices heard, even though we are in the minority.
  We don't control the floor, we can't put our bills on the agenda to 
have a debate, and often we can't even get an amendment considered on 
the bills. The Rules Committee strips out anything that would 
materially change a bill. Sadly, that has been a bipartisan approach to 
governing in this body. That is not a functioning legislature when 
those kinds of things happen.
  Why is that important?
  Every Member needs to have their voice heard, and they should be 
heard on the bill. They should be heard when this body wants to change 
our constitutional protections fundamentally. The right to keep and 
bear arms shall not be infringed. The majority doesn't seek to amend 
the Constitution, but they seek to nullify that constitutional 
guarantee with subterfuge.
  They say that this is a background check bill. Well, every commercial 
firearm transaction today already requires a background check. It 
doesn't matter whether you do it at a gun store, at a gun show, or at 
any other forum, if you buy a firearm from a commercial seller of 
firearms, a Federal firearm license holder, you have to do a background 
check. You can't do it, Mr. Speaker.
  Now, what does this do?
  It basically says, Mr. Speaker, that if you want to even loan a gun 
to a family member to go on a hunting trip, then you have to get a 
background check. Someone would be criminalized for doing that. You 
can't have private transfers. Essentially, the government says you 
can't be trusted to sell a firearm to anybody. You have to go to a 
licensed agent of the Federal Government.
  How do they guarantee that?
  They guarantee that by creating a registry.
  Why should we be concerned about that?
  Well, that is the path toward seizing it. It doesn't guarantee that 
the Government will do it, but let me tell you about the Supreme Court 
and what is going on right now, Mr. Speaker.
  Under the Fourth Amendment, there is a clause that has been 
interpreted by Court opinions to allow seizures for community care--
warrantless seizures of property. This goes with civil asset forfeiture 
and all kinds of abuses of warrantless surveillance and the Fourth 
Amendment. If we do not stand up and defend the Second Amendment today, 
it will be just as abused as the Fourth Amendment's guarantee of 
privacy is today.
  We have to oppose this bill. The people of the United States of 
America are constitutionally guaranteed the right to keep and bear 
arms, and this body shall not infringe it, and it shall not be 
infringed without a constitutional amendment, and that is not what is 
on the floor today.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge everyone to oppose H.R. 8 and any such effort to 
deny the American citizens the protections our Constitution guarantees.
  Mr. BIGGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from North Carolina 
(Mr. Budd).

[[Page H1183]]

  

  Mr. BUDD. Mr. Speaker, as a Federally licensed gun store owner, I 
have a unique perspective on our Second Amendment rights, and I 
actually happen to know how background checks actually work.
  It seems that H.R. 8 is being sold as universal background checks, 
and it would impose harsh penalties, like six-figure fines and jail 
time, for the simple act of handing a firearm to another person even 
for temporary use, like instruction.
  The exemptions under H.R. 8 are woefully inadequate to protect the 
rights of law-abiding gun owners.
  Let's say, Mr. Speaker, that you loan your firearm to a victim of 
domestic violence because their abuser is just getting ready to be 
released from jail, or if a suicidal friend asks you to take possession 
of their firearm, or if you loan your cousin a gun after a series of 
burglaries in their neighborhood. These new transfer penalties would 
turn law-abiding citizens into criminals.
  We simply cannot sacrifice our rights by passing laws that will make 
our families less safe and laws that criminals will simply ignore. We 
must always protect and preserve our God-given Second Amendment rights.
  Mr. BIGGS. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for his speech.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Good).
  Mr. GOOD of Virginia. Shall not be infringed. Shall not be infringed. 
The right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.
  James Madison, our fourth President, the primary architect of the 
Constitution and the first Congressman from Virginia's Fifth District, 
said: ``Americans have the right and advantage of being armed--unlike 
the citizens of other countries whose governments are afraid to trust 
the people with arms.''
  Our right to arm and defend ourselves is a God-given right, and we 
are privileged to live in a country whose Founders had the wisdom and 
the strength to codify that right in the Constitution.
  James Madison and our other Founders recognized that this was a 
fundamental right to protect our rights to life, liberty, and the 
pursuit of happiness; and they had the foresight to include this right 
among those first 10 amendments listed in the Constitution which were 
intended to protect us from our government. It was James Madison who 
also said: ``The truth is that all men having power ought to be 
mistrusted.''
  The Second Amendment is not about hunting--that is great. It is not, 
again, primarily about self-defense or protecting our family--that is 
essential. It is about being a check against tyranny and ensure we 
remain a free people.
  There is a reason it was the second right listed in the Bill of 
Rights--second only to the First Amendment protections of our right to 
free speech, assembly, and worship. The Second Amendment is the 
guarantor or protector of all other rights. If our Second Amendment 
right is not safe, then no rights are safe, and with this Democrat 
majority in this Congress, this right is not safe.
  In my last quote tonight from James Madison, he also said: ``I 
believe there are more instances of the abridgement of freedom of the 
people by gradual and silent encroachments by those in power than by 
violent and sudden usurpations.''
  We are witnessing the gradual encroachment on our fundamental Second 
Amendment right today by this Democrat majority.
  Mr. BIGGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield to my friend from Texas (Mr. Cloud).
  Mr. CLOUD. Mr. Speaker, what we are considering here today with H.R. 
8 has been dubbed a universal background check bill, but in reality, it 
would criminalize--let me say that again--it would criminalize the 
private transfer of firearms.
  As part of the march to strip Americans of their guaranteed Second 
Amendment right, this gun control bill would make it a crime to sell or 
transfer a firearm without first seeking permission from the almighty 
Government.
  The dirty secret is that the proponents of gun control, Mr. Speaker, 
want you to think that this is the end of the road when, in fact, that 
is not true. In 2013 President Obama's Department of Justice's National 
Institute of Justice said that the effectiveness of universal 
background checks depends on requiring gun registration.
  So what we are witnessing here today is the first step to requiring a 
nationwide gun registration in America.
  The Second Amendment to the Constitution says: ``A well regulated 
militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of 
the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.''
  In this Nation of ``We the People,'' we recognize that we as citizens 
are not subjects of our government and that our inalienable rights are 
not a grant from the government but a gift from God, and to that end 
the Second Amendment doesn't grant us a right, but rather those 
carefully crafted words acknowledge an already existing right: the 
right of the people to possess a firearm.
  The Constitution does not say you may or may not be able to own a 
firearm, we will circle back with you, we will get back with you on 
that.
  It doesn't. It guarantees the right.
  This bill does nothing to make communities more safe. This is another 
overreaching attempt by leftist leaders drunk on unchecked power to 
control the lives of freedom-loving citizens.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to oppose this legislation.
  Mr. BIGGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from South Carolina 
(Mr. Norman).
  Mr. NORMAN. Mr. Speaker, the right of the people to keep and bear 
arms in the United States is a fundamental principle expressed in our 
Bill of Rights.
  Let me be clear: I will never do anything to infringe upon this right 
clearly laid out in our Second Amendment, but this bill, H.R. 8, will 
do just that.

  H.R. 8 is a sweeping piece of legislation that imposes burdens on the 
constitutional rights of law-abiding citizens. It is plain and simple. 
This bill is another attempt by Democrats to limit the rights of the 
American people.
  This legislation would make it a crime, subject to limited 
exceptions, to simply hand a firearm to another person. This bill could 
trigger penalties of up to a year in prison and a $100,000 fine.
  This bill would make it illegal to transfer a firearm to another 
person during a life-threatening emergency. That could be considered a 
crime punishable by a fine of monetary dollars.
  Also, just so we are on the same page, universal background checks do 
not stop criminals from possessing firearms. As my colleagues on the 
other side of the aisle have said: In the United States less than one 
percent of criminals who had possessed a firearm during their offense 
got firearms through legal channels--less than one percent. That means 
that these criminals obtained their firearms outside of the setting 
that would require a background check to begin with.
  What makes you believe that this legislation would change that, Mr. 
Speaker?
  Our solution should be focused on improving access to mental 
healthcare services, addressing the root causes of violence, and 
carrying out our existing laws through investments in our law 
enforcement and community programs--not walking all over law-abiding 
citizens for protecting their loved ones. We all swore to uphold the 
Constitution, and it should be our goal in this Congress to work 
against legislation like this that would clearly infringe on our Second 
Amendment rights of American citizens.
  Mr. Speaker, I will be a resounding ``no'' when it is time to vote.
  Mr. BIGGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Georgia (Mrs. 
Greene).
  Mrs. GREENE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to Democrat 
gun control bills far and wide.
  I would like to tell you about a gun law in Georgia: In order to 
provide for the emergency management of the city, and further, in order 
to provide for and protect the safety, security and general welfare of 
the city and its inhabitants, every head of household residing in the 
city limits is required to maintain a firearm, together with 
ammunition.

                              {time}  2145

  Mr. Speaker, that is Kennesaw, Georgia, where, over 6 years, there 
has only been one murder and a violent crime rate of 2 percent.

[[Page H1184]]

  Would you like to know why? It is because every single criminal knows 
that if they are going to attack someone in Kennesaw, Georgia, they are 
going to go across a gun owner, and it is the law that every household 
and homeowner owns a gun and keeps one in their household.
  You see, guns are not scary. The fact that we may not have guns is 
scary. Guns are a great form of protection. It is an equalizer to a 
criminal who could care less about all the gun laws that Democrats want 
to pass on Americans, infringing on their Second Amendment rights.
  H.R. 8 and H.R. 1446 are just more gun control legislation violating 
Americans' great right to bear arms. I rise in opposition to both of 
these bills, and I hope that the Democrats will come to their senses 
and figure out that gun rights are American rights.
  Mr. BIGGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Colorado 
(Mrs. Boebert).
  Mrs. BOEBERT. Mr. Speaker, in 2019, as a private citizen, a mom, a 
small business owner, I was ticked off that a politician running for 
President of the United States wanted to strip away our enumerated 
constitutional rights. So with my Glock on my hip, I drove 3 hours to 
tell Robert Francis O'Rourke, also known as Beto, hell no, you are not 
taking our guns.
  That message resonated with millions of Americans. But, sadly, the 
Democrat Party, isolated in their basements and gated mansions, still 
hasn't gotten the message. Those on the left who would steamroll the 
rights of law-abiding citizens are still at it.
  My colleagues on the other side of the aisle seem to be totally 
oblivious to the message Americans sent in 2020. Nearly 8.5 million 
Americans purchased a firearm for the very first time in 2020. With the 
left defunding the police, and antifa rioting, looting, burning down 
businesses, people made the reasonable and rational decision to take 
self-protection seriously and arm themselves.
  And the Democrat response? More regulations, more bureaucracy, more 
control, less freedom.
  Mr. Speaker, I will say it again, and I will say it nice and loud so 
everyone can hear me. Those on the left are still tucked away safely in 
their gated mansions with their armed security, ignoring everyday 
Americans.
  For me, this is a hell no. It is a hell no to government treading on 
our rights. It is a hell no to the regulation of our Second Amendment. 
It is a hell no to government trampling on our freedoms.
  All these new gun laws will do is leave law-abiding citizens 
defenseless while criminals--wait for it--break the law.
  So, I have a few questions for my colleagues on the left. I want to 
know, why do you trust the American people so little? Why do you look 
down on them as lesser than you? How detached are you to believe that 
someone else's rights should be subject to bureaucratic permission, to 
your permission? Why is it okay to provide armed security for yourself 
but take away the right of Americans to do so themselves?
  Why do you feel the need to keep a registry of gun owners? Do you not 
trust the American people? Are you afraid of your neighbors? Do you 
despise their rights?
  How much power over the American people will it take to satisfy these 
radicals on the left? Our rights don't come from politicians. They come 
from God Almighty. Stop pretending to be God. Do your job and protect 
the rights of the American people.
  Mr. BIGGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Montana (Mr. 
Rosendale).
  Mr. ROSENDALE. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in opposition to the extreme gun control 
measures being pushed by the Democratic majority. Make no mistake, they 
are extreme and an assault on our freedoms.
  The Second Amendment guarantees the right of every American to keep 
and bear arms. I am proud to be from the State with the highest rate of 
gun ownership in the Nation. In Montana, law-abiding gun owners use 
firearms every day and exercise their God-given liberties.
  Mr. Speaker, the bills in the House this week serve only to punish 
responsible gun owners and take away the Second Amendment rights of 
Montanans.
  H.R. 8 would not just require background checks for the sale of 
firearms but for changes of ownership and even the most temporary 
transfers of possession. Someone who simply hands a firearm to another 
person could be subject to a year in prison and a $100,000 fine.
  This would include the rancher who lends his gun to a neighbor whose 
cattle are being harassed by coyotes or to the hunter who lends a rifle 
to a buddy who is going on a hunting trip. This is deeply troubling, as 
these scenarios are very common in Montana.
  H.R. 1446 is just as bad. While it claims to close a gun-buying 
loophole, it would give the FBI discretion to delay firearm purchases 
or transfers indefinitely and could even put the burden on law-abiding 
citizens to prove that they are eligible to purchase a firearm.
  The Framers of our Constitution did not intend for us to have to beg 
the government to be able to exercise our freedoms. In fact, they 
included the Second Amendment to make sure that we didn't have to. 
``Shall not be infringed'' is extremely clear. Unfortunately, that is 
exactly the path that Democrats seem intent on pursuing.
  I thank my colleagues who stand with me today, and I urge all of my 
colleagues who cherish our constitutional liberties to join me in 
opposing these bills and any other bill that would infringe on our 
Second Amendment rights.
  Mr. BIGGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Illinois 
(Mrs. Miller).
  Mrs. MILLER of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend and 
colleague, Congressman Biggs, for this Special Order.
  We swore an oath to defend the Constitution, which includes the 
Second Amendment. But now, Democrats are going back on that oath by 
proposing H.R. 8, saying that we should enforce universal background 
checks on guns.

  Continuing to put forth far-reaching laws on guns will only 
significantly increase the burden of the millions of law-abiding 
Americans who wish to exercise their Second Amendment right to self-
defense.
  In my State of Illinois, Chicago has the fourth-strictest gun laws in 
the country, but criminal misuse of firearms in Chicago remains at the 
top of the list. This is because, if there is one thing that we know 
about criminals, it is that they don't care about obeying the law.
  The Second Amendment was written to prevent the government from 
seizing arms. H.R. 8 is an attack on our rights and is one step closer 
to doing exactly what our Founders were guarding against.
  We do not need to punish law-abiding citizens. Instead, we should do 
all we can to cherish and protect this right that we are so blessed to 
have.
  Mr. BIGGS. Mr. Speaker, it is now my privilege to yield to the 
gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Clyde).
  Mr. CLYDE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in defense of the Second Amendment and 
in opposition to H.R. 8, the universal background checks act.
  Federal law already restricts transferring firearms to prohibited 
individuals. Instead of working to strengthen the enforcement of laws 
currently on the books, this legislation will criminalize many 
activities that are common practice among law-abiding gun owners, while 
failing to prevent guns from getting into the hands of criminals.
  Criminals do not follow the law when obtaining their firearms, and 
nothing in the bill would prevent them from continuing to obtain 
firearms through avenues like the black market, theft, or illegal straw 
purchases.
  Federal law already strictly prohibits the possession, receipt, or 
purchase of firearms by prohibited individuals, including convicted 
felons, fugitives from justice, unlawful users of controlled 
substances, illegal aliens, and individuals subject to protective 
orders or convicted of a crime of domestic violence.
  Meanwhile, law-abiding citizens could face up to a year in prison and 
a $100,000 fine for common practices such as trades, private sales, 
gifts, or temporary loans of firearms if this bill becomes law.

[[Page H1185]]

  Lastly, I will note that under the rules of interpretation in H.R. 8, 
it says: ``Rules of interpretation. Nothing in this act, or any 
amendment made by this act, shall be construed to: authorize the 
establishment, directly or indirectly, of a national firearms 
registry.''
  That is false. This bill will create a national registry. That is 
because every firearms transfer has to go through a Federal firearms 
licensee's acquisition and disposition logbook. And every time a 
Federal firearms license is not renewed, those records must be sent to 
the ATF for storage, which, in turn, scans those records into a 
database for a future use. That is, in effect, a national firearms 
registry in the making.
  If the rules of interpretation of H.R. 8 are correctly followed, then 
one could logically argue that this bill actually prohibits itself by, 
in its own words, prohibiting, directly or indirectly, a national 
firearms registry.
  Mr. BIGGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  I thank the gentleman from Georgia. I thank all of my colleagues. I 
appreciate the opportunity to be with so many of my friends who support 
the Second Amendment and oppose H.R. 8.
  I was talking earlier tonight about the Heller decision, where 
Justice Scalia said the Second Amendment is a preexisting right. 
Justice Scalia wrote: ``There seems to us no doubt, on the basis of 
both text and history, that the Second Amendment conferred an 
individual right to keep and bear arms.'' He did state ``the right was 
not unlimited,'' but the bill being considered goes well beyond 
acceptable limitations.
  H.R. 8 is another bill that the majority is bringing to the floor 
this session without a hearing or markup in the Judiciary Committee.
  Last Congress, the markup of H.R. 8 was cut short when the chairman 
of the committee introduced an amendment in the nature of a substitute 
right in the middle of the markup after Republicans repeatedly offered 
amendments highlighting flaws in the bill. He didn't allow Members 
opposed to the amendment to speak or offer amendments. He then called 
for the vote on the substitute amendment. This hurried process 
demonstrated that Democrats cared more about simply passing a bill than 
passing a good bill.
  H.R. 8 would not have prevented recent shootings. In Parkland, the 
shooter acquired the firearm legally from an FFL after undergoing a 
NICS check.
  In Sutherland Springs, Texas, the shooter made purchases from an FFL 
following a NICS check.
  In Las Vegas, the shooter purchased his firearms from an FFL after a 
background check.
  In Orlando, the shooter purchased his firearms legally from an FFL 
following a NICS check.
  I can go on, but there are so many more examples that are just the 
same because criminals who seek to do harm will get guns, regardless of 
the new restrictions imposed by H.R. 8. That is just the nature of 
criminals.
  I was a prosecutor and a criminal defense attorney. I can tell you, 
that is the way criminals are. They violate the law.
  With very limited exceptions, H.R. 8 makes it illegal for Americans 
to get a gun if a nonlicensed importer, manufacturer, or dealer is 
involved. And how will the government know if an illegal transfer 
occurs?
  Eventually, the government will have to create a registry of all 
firearms and firearm owners so that they can track all transfers. That 
is what they want to do here. Without a registry, this bill is utterly 
unenforceable.
  I have heard supporters of this bill say that other countries have 
similar restrictions, so we need to do the same as well. But the 
reality is, there is no other country on the face of this planet that 
has a Second Amendment, where the Founders of that country said the 
right to bear arms and protect yourself against government and 
individuals is a God-given right and deserves to be protected. It is, 
as Justice Scalia said, a preexisting right.

  Supporters say that this bill is about saving lives. If that is what 
is important, then I would encourage every supporter of this bill to 
join me in cosponsoring the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection 
Act, which actually will save lives. I urge Speaker Pelosi to bring 
that bill to the floor today.
  I oppose this bill. I urge all of my colleagues to do the same.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleagues for being here tonight, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.

                          ____________________