[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 96 (Monday, June 6, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2776-S2777]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                              Gun Violence

  Mr. CORNYN. Madam President, like so many people in Texas and across 
the country, I can't stop thinking about the 19 children and the two 
teachers who lost their lives in Uvalde, TX. Over the last several 
days, 21 families have started burying their loved ones. This tight-
knit community of 15,000 people 60 miles from the U.S.-Mexico border is 
grieving the loss of classmates, playmates, friends, neighbors, 
colleagues, and fellow church members.
  As grief turns to anger and anger turns to action, everyone is asking 
the question--the logical question--how do we stop these sort of things 
from happening again? Well, I think that is the right question. That is 
the question that has been on my mind and dominating conversations with 
my colleagues the last couple of weeks.
  This is a big diverse country. There are a lot of differences 
regionally, culturally, and the like. Each of us have ideas about what 
would work best, but that is the genius of our Federal system, one that 
Louis Brandeis called the ``laboratories of democracy'' because ``one 
size fits all'' is not necessarily always the right solution.
  But those of us who work here in the Senate know this is not just 
about our goals or ideals; it is about what was once called the ``art 
of the possible.'' Perfect bills exist only in our imagination and we 
have to be realistic about what can pass both Chambers of Congress and 
get the President's signature. And we know it is not easy by design. 
The Founding Fathers had this idea that if they made it hard to pass 
legislation, if they forced us to build consensus, that we wouldn't 
pass a lot of laws that would limit individual freedom and liberty; 
that it would only be where there was a true national consensus that we 
could get those laws passed.
  Over the last week and a half, I have been talking, particularly with 
Senator Murphy, Senator Tillis, Senator Sinema, but, literally, with 
everybody I could reach on the phone or get through text message to see 
if there is some package of mental health and safety legislation that 
addresses some of the factors that might have prevented the recent 
shootings in Uvalde and elsewhere.
  I want to be clear, though. We are not talking about restricting the 
rights of current law-abiding gun owners or citizens. This is a 
constitutional right, as much as that may go against the grain of some 
of our colleagues who would like to see us do things that would 
restrict the right of American citizens under the Second Amendment. The 
right to keep and bear arms is guaranteed by the Constitution itself. 
And the vast majority of the Republican conference feels, certainly, 
the same way.
  What I am interested in is keeping guns out of the hands of those 
who, by current law, are not supposed to have them--people with mental 
health problems, people who have criminal records.
  Again, this is about the ``art of the possible.'' In order to deliver 
results, we have to build consensus, and the best way to do that is 
through targeted reforms. We have actually had success doing this 
before. On November 5, 2017, a tight-knit community in Texas called 
Sutherland Springs was the target of a shooting. A gunman opened fire 
at a small Baptist church, killing 26 people. We quickly learned that 
the shooter had a long and disturbing record of violence--school 
suspensions, comments about wanting to kill his superiors in the 
military, animal abuse, violence against those closest to him, felony, 
domestic violence convictions--he fractured the skull of his stepson in 
a fit of anger, and he even spent time in military prison. Yet, under 
the existing National Instant Criminal Background Check System, the Air 
Force had not uploaded that information.
  Under existing Federal law, the shooter was prohibited from ever 
purchasing or possessing a firearm. So how did he get his hands on a 
semiautomatic weapon that he used to take 26 innocent lives? Well, it 
was because of a broken system. He was able to purchase four firearms 
because the information about his criminal history had never been 
uploaded into the National Instant Criminal Background Check System 
known as the NICS system. In that case, it was clear that the answer 
was, How do we stop this again? It was obvious: Get the background 
check system improved to record existing disqualifications to purchase 
or possess firearms.

  Senator Murphy and I introduced the Fix NICS Act to ensure all 
departments and agencies accurately and correctly uploaded these 
conviction records on a timely basis. That bill, at the time it became 
law, had more than 70 bipartisan cosponsors, and it was signed into law 
in March 2018. And here is what happened next. In the first 3 years 
since that bill became law, 11\1/2\ million additional records have 
been uploaded into the three national databases--11.5 million 
additional records. The number of records in one of those databases 
increased by more than 30 percent.
  I believe the reason we were able to succeed with the Fix NICS 
legislation is because it addressed a glaring problem without 
jeopardizing the rights of law-abiding citizens under the Second 
Amendment. I mentioned that the bill had more than 70 cosponsors. I am 
reminded here that it had 77 bipartisan cosponsors. And that was how we 
passed the first major reform to the background checks system in 25 
years. My hope is we can take the same approach here to build consensus 
by targeting the problem with a targeted solution.
  This one is actually harder because in Uvalde there were so many 
points of failure--not just one--multiple points of failure. But one 
obvious glaring issue is the lack of mental health intervention. 
According to the reports we have seen, the shooter was isolated, he was 
bullied, he harmed himself, he self-mutilated. He had a history of 
fighting and threatening students and abusing animals. These are 
textbook signs, compounded with a profile we have seen too often of 
someone who could pose, not only as a threat to himself, but to others, 
as well.
  But these signs were ignored, and we saw the tragic consequences. I 
don't think it is breaking news to say that there is a mental health 
crisis among America's children, and we can't ignore the devastating 
impact that the pandemic had on a lot of our young people.

[[Page S2777]]

In a recent survey conducted by the New York Times, 94 percent of 
school counselors said their students were showing more signs of 
anxiety and depression than before the pandemic. And 88 percent said 
students were having more trouble regulating their emotions and almost 
three-quarters said they were having difficulty solving conflicts with 
their friends. One counselor said: ``Kids are more impulsive, [they 
are] less controlled, and struggle with emotional regulation.''
  I believe we need to take this opportunity to support our children 
who struggle with emotional or mental health problems, and that is 
something I believe will bring us together and all 100 Senators can 
agree on.
  Another big issue is school safety. This shooter should never have 
been able to gain access to Robb Elementary School that day. Again, the 
circumstances of how he gained that access are still under 
investigation. Initial reports indicated the door had been propped 
open. Now the police say the door had been closed but did not 
automatically lock like it was supposed to. If our schools need more 
resources to harden their infrastructure and evaluate their physical 
security measures and make necessary improvements, that is something we 
can agree on and something we need to do. No one should be able to walk 
through the door of a school and access a classroom so easily. You 
can't get into an airport very easily. We know how to do this.
  Improving school safety also means reviewing current protocol, 
developing best practices, and adding or maybe expanding the number of 
school resource officers.
  These are commonsense ways to save lives, and we need to provide 
schools with the resources to protect our students and our teachers.
  I am a proud supporter of the Second Amendment, period. We also 
recognize, though, that there are people who are prohibited by current 
law from purchasing guns, like the shooter in Sutherland Springs, 
because of criminal records or mental illness.
  We are discussing possible additional reforms to keep guns out of the 
hands of people who are not legally allowed to purchase or possess them 
in the first place. If we reach an agreement, law-abiding gun owners 
will not be impacted at all. Our conversations are ongoing, and, 
indeed, all 100 Senators will be part of that conversation, but these 
are the broad parameters of the things that I am interested in 
addressing. We are not talking about banning a category of weapons 
across the board, a ban on certain high-capacity magazines, or changing 
the background check system by adding additional disqualifying items. 
If we are actually serious about finding common ground and building 
consensus, those sorts of things will stand no chance of passing the 
Senate. Instead, we are talking about commonsense, targeted reforms 
that are responsive to the tragedies in Uvalde and elsewhere and that 
will, I believe, help save lives--strengthening mental health, 
bolstering school security, keeping guns out of the hands of people who 
are already legally prohibited from having them. I think a lot of our 
colleagues could get behind those provisions like they did with the Fix 
NICS bill.
  Following Sutherland Springs, we came up with a targeted bill to 
address specific circumstances. I hope we can do so again. I will not 
settle on inadequate or downright harmful legislation for the sake of 
doing something. That is not productive for anyone.
  That is one of the things I hear the most. People say ``Do 
something.'' Well, we can agree that something needs to be done, but 
what that something is, is much harder to achieve, and so targeted 
reforms, I think, are the way to get to where we need to go.
  I understand the desire for quick action, but I hope the Democratic 
leader will allow bipartisan discussions to continue and then conclude 
before he pulls the plug and schedules show votes on something he knows 
can't pass. He has threatened to do it, but I don't believe we ought to 
try to meet artificial deadlines. We know how to do this, and I think 
giving the Senate adequate time over the next week or so to try to 
reach that consensus is eminently reasonable.
  I don't believe the Senate will be voting this week because good 
consensus legislation takes time. So I hope Senator Schumer will let 
his Members work. There is no use in rushing a vote on a doomed, 
partisan bill like the House is expected to vote on this week. My goal 
is to achieve a result, and the only way we can do that, the only way 
we can get a bill that will pass both Chambers and earn the President's 
signature, is by taking the time and reaching that consensus.
  Right now, there is not a bill out there that stands a chance of 
succeeding in the coming days, but my hope is that will change by 
allowing the Senate to do the work we know how to do and come up with a 
bipartisan bill that commands the support of 60-plus Members of the 
Senate and something we can send to the President for his signature.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Ms. Duckworth). The clerk will call the roll.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. MORAN. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.