[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 212 (Tuesday, December 16, 2025)]
[House]
[Pages H5902-H5903]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                             MASS SHOOTINGS

  (Mr. Cisneros of California was recognized to address the House for 5 
minutes.)
  Mr. CISNEROS. Mr. Speaker, like many people on Sunday, I went to 
church. I went to church and prayed for the victims at my alma mater, 
Brown University.
  Eleven kids were studying for their economics final exam and dreaming 
about going home to their families for the holidays when a gunman 
entered the room and started shooting. I prayed for the families and 
those who were shot and wounded, and I hope they all have a speedy 
recovery.
  I also prayed for Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov and Ella Cook, who both 
lost their lives to the unimaginable, senseless shooting. They were 
cherished members of the Brown community and had years of life and 
bright futures ahead of them. In one moment, it was all taken.
  I prayed for them on Sunday, and I will continue to pray for them, 
but it is not enough. It will never be enough. We have a problem with 
gun violence and mass shootings in this country.
  Twenty-six years ago, at Columbine High School in Colorado, 13 people 
were shot dead and 20 others injured. Thirteen years ago, at Sandy Hook 
Elementary in Connecticut, 26 were fatally wounded. In 2018, 17 were 
killed and 18 were wounded at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in 
Florida.
  These are just some of the more high-profile shootings over the last 
26 years. There have been countless others at schools, movie theaters, 
parades, shopping centers, and even a concert in Las Vegas, where a 
family friend lost his daughter.
  From 2000 to 2022, the United States has had over three times as many 
mass shootings as 16 other politically similar countries combined.
  The one thing that has remained consistent during this time is that 
Congress has failed to act. Mass shooting after mass shooting, death 
after death, Congress has done nothing.
  To my colleagues in Congress, I compel you to end this tragedy. As a 
practicing Catholic, I put my faith in God, but He is not going to 
solve this problem for us.
  The prayers might make us feel good, but they are doing nothing to 
stop the scourge of gun violence threatening our communities. There is 
not going to be a miracle from Heaven that will end gun violence for 
us. We need to do it.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask: Where is the outrage from my Republican 
colleagues? The President was outraged over the shooting and death of 
American soldiers in Syria this weekend, and he should be. My 
sympathies are with those American heroes who gave their lives for our 
country fighting terrorists, but all Donald Trump had to say about the 
Brown University shooting was: ``Things can happen.''

                              {time}  1015

  Mr. Speaker, really? Now is the time for action. It is what the 
American

[[Page H5903]]

people want. Over 90 percent of Americans want universal background 
checks. Mr. Speaker, 60 percent support an assault weapons ban, 75 
percent support red flag laws, and over 83 percent support gun safety 
storage.
  Some of my Republican colleagues will argue that guns don't kill 
people. People kill people. Anyone who does this must have mental 
health issues.
  This is all the more reason for the background checks and the red 
flag laws. We cannot continue to act like nothing is wrong in America. 
We have a problem with gun violence and mass shootings in our country, 
and Congress must finally act.
  Will enacting these laws eliminate mass shootings, gun violence, or 
suicides completely? No, but commonsense gun laws like this will make a 
difference, and it is a start.
  This past weekend was one of the worst that I can remember. I spoke 
about the Brown University shooting and mentioned the soldiers in 
Syria. We also lost a great American and artist in Rob Reiner and his 
wife, Michele, this past weekend due to an act of violence.
  Mr. Speaker, I must say I was appalled by the President's response to 
his death. It was nothing more than shameful and disrespectful and 
unbecoming of the person who is supposed to be the leader of our 
country.
  I also send my condolences to the Australian people who suffered 
through their own mass shooting this past weekend, a mass shooting that 
was a hate crime that targeted the Jewish community in Australia with 
15 people dead, including a 10-year-old girl and a Holocaust survivor.
  Fortunately, in Australia, they are already talking about how they 
can change things to prevent this from happening again. I can only hope 
there will be similar action in our own country and Congress will 
finally act. If history proves us right, I very much doubt it.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Members are reminded to refrain from 
engaging in personalities towards the President.

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