[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 150 (2004), Part 14]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 18637-18638]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                   ASSAULT WEAPON BAN REAUTHORIZATION

                                 ______
                                 

                    HON. JUANITA MILLENDER-McDONALD

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 15, 2004

  Ms. MILLENDER-McDONALD. Mr. Speaker, I rise to address the House for 
five minutes.
  Mr. Speaker, we are in a crisis situation in America--and here in 
Congress. On Monday the assault weapon ban bill expired at midnight and 
to date there has been no indication from this Republican controlled 
Congress that this important legislation will be reauthorized, let 
alone addressed, during this session.
  This is unacceptable. It is unfathomable to me that Congress and this 
administration would let this landmark legislation merely expire.
  In 1994, Congress came together with the leadership of then President 
Clinton to pass the Assault Weapons Ban legislation that banned the 
possession, transfer, or further domestic manufacture of semiautomatic 
assault weapons for ten years.
  The legislation has had documented success.
  The U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics reports that since 1994 the 
annual amount of gun related violence has declined by 70%. 
Unfortunately, tonight, we are on the cusp of taking a major step 
backwards with regard to protecting our citizens.
  Prior to 1994, gun violence, especially among our children was off 
the charts. The number of homicides committed annually with a firearm 
by persons in the 14- to 24-year-old age group increased by 173% from 
1985 to 1993.
  Physicians, school teachers, police officers, mothers, fathers, 
Republicans and Democrats alike have all called my office this past 
week, and I'm sure many of my colleagues, and asked why the Republican 
controlled Congress has not done their job in protecting the American 
people, our children, our schools and our communities?
  Nationally, 70% of the American people have spoken and their message 
is loud and clear--we need to extend the Assault Weapons Ban.
  The National Association of Police Organizations, the National 
Coalition of Public Safety Officers both support reauthorizing this 
legislation. My chief of police in Los Angeles strongly supports 
reauthorizing this legislation.
  Now is not the time to make it easier for criminals and terrorists to 
get their hands on assault weapons. We live in a different world, a 
more violent world. Much has changed since 1994.
  We have been attacked as a country and as a people. Now more than 
ever we must make it more difficult for those who want to harm us to 
get their hands on weapons that have the potential for mass killing.
  On Saturday, our country recognized the third anniversary of the 
horrific September 11th terrorist attacks.
  Since that tragic day our Nation has waged an on-going war on 
terrorism, invaded Iraq with the intent of disarming Saddam Hussein, 
yet tonight we do not even blink in allowing weapons capable of mass 
killing back on our streets and in our communities.
  We have created a Department of Homeland Security to protect the home 
front, our communities and our citizens.
  At the same time, we are asking more from our community's police 
forces, while making huge cuts to the COPS program.
  Our brave men and women who protect our communities are doing more 
with less. They are now our first responders, our last defense against 
a terrorist attack, all while they continue to do their job of 
protecting our communities. Our community's law enforcement have their 
hands full. We do not need to tie an arm behind their backs as they 
lead the fight on terror on the home front and continue to keep our 
communities safe.
  This Administration, the Department of Homeland Security along with 
the Department of Justice has gone to great lengths to create avenues 
in which to alert the American people that they are in danger.
  The Department of Homeland Security has created an elaborate color 
alert system . . . red, orange, yellow, blue and green . . . to alert 
our citizens that they are in danger.
  There has been much debate on how the administration chooses to use 
this new alert system or what is the criteria that causes the threat 
level to rise to red--well, tonight we are witnessing an example of an 
elevated threat level and it is coming from within our communities.
  Our local law enforcement officials will now be on constant high 
alert because of this administration's inability to reauthorize the 
assault weapon ban bill. We cannot have inaction from the Bush 
Administration--we must

[[Page 18638]]

have action to protect our citizens and our families.

                          ____________________