[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 11]
[Senate]
[Page 15966]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                              GUN VIOLENCE

  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, we have all been deeply shaken by the 
horrific tragedies in Charleston and Roseburg and by all the mass 
killings that now occur with alarming regularity. The American people 
overwhelmingly support commonsense reforms that will keep firearms out 
of the hands of criminals and dangerous individuals; yet in response to 
mass shootings, too often Congress slips into a familiar cycle of 
shock, sorrow and, ultimately, inaction. Some in Congress pretend that 
there are no solutions; others claim that any restriction aimed at 
keeping guns out of the hands of dangerous people represents an affront 
to the Second Amendment. They are wrong.
  Many, many Americans have had enough. We will not be satisfied by 
those who only offer their sympathies. And we will not be lulled into 
inaction.
  While I was chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee last Congress, 
we addressed gun violence head-on. In the wake of the horrifying and 
senseless murder of 26 people, including 20 children, at Sandy Hook 
Elementary in Newtown, CT, I and all Democratic members on the 
committee resolved to pass sensible reforms to protect our communities. 
We were moved by the powerful words of former Congresswoman Gabrielle 
Giffords calling on us to act, and we reported out legislation that 
would punish criminals who traffic in firearms and would close 
background check loopholes. This included my bipartisan legislation to 
prevent criminals from using straw purchasers who exploit weak 
background check laws in order to funnel firearms to criminals. Our 
efforts were strongly supported by the American public, but Senate 
Republicans blocked these commonsense reforms on the Senate floor.
  It has been more than 3 months since Democratic members of the 
Judiciary Committee called for a hearing in the wake of the tragedy in 
Charleston, SC. I hope the majority will soon schedule this hearing so 
that we can have a constructive discussion on gun violence that has 
shaken too many communities and too many families. But if we truly want 
to make a difference, we must work together to build consensus around 
solutions to gun violence. I will work with anyone interested in 
preventing these tragedies, and I will soon reintroduce my legislation 
to strengthen our straw purchasing and firearm trafficking laws.
  Like many Vermonters, I grew up with firearms, and I have enormous 
respect for the freedoms the Second Amendment protects. None of the 
concepts put forward by the Democratic caucus threaten the Second 
Amendment rights of lawful gun owners. But American lives are 
threatened when our laws do not protect them. This need not be a 
partisan issue, and we must work together.
  Our country desperately needs meaningful reform now. The toll that 
gun violence takes on our communities is too great. It is past time for 
Congress to act. The American people should not have to wait until the 
next tragedy.

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