DeLauro Calls on Congress to Stand Up for Victims of Gun Violence
WASHINGTON, DC (June 23, 2016) — Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (CT-03) today spoke on the House floor for a third time during the Democratic sit-in to call on Congress to do the right thing for the American people and enact commonsense gun violence legislation. During her remarks, DeLauro noted “We are here because we represent the American people. It is our job to be here and to stay for as long as we can to make sure we win for the American people.”
Democrats held the House floor for more than 24 hours after Congressmen John Lewis (GA-05) and John Larson (CT-01) started calling for #NoBillNoBreak on Wednesday morning. DeLauro and her Democratic colleagues are now taking their calls to end gun violence to districts across the country during the House recess.
Click here to watch the full remarks.
Here is an excerpt of the remarks, as delivered:
“Speaker Ryan had the temerity to say that this is a political stunt—a political stunt. Let me just say to you, do you want to say that to the families of those twenty babies who were massacred and slaughtered in Newtown, at Sandy Hook? A political stunt?
“I’ve got the names of the people who have died in Connecticut since Sandy Hook. I can’t read all of their names, but Alton Perry, Dylan Hockley, all of these folks—people from Hartford, New Haven, from Manchester, all of the cities and towns in the great state of Connecticut—who have lost children, some at 7 years old, some at 18, or 19, or 20 years old. You want to tell those parents—those families—that this is a political stunt? No, it isn’t a political stunt.
“What this was about was members of this body—and I’m so proud of the Democratic members of this body—because what this is, was to answer to our constituents, who are saddened, who have a hole in their heart that can never be mended because a loved one is gone. And they want us—their elected representatives, to stand up, to fight for them, to fight for the legislation that will make sense. Closing the loopholes, background checks, saying to people who are potential terrorists, ‘no fly, no buy,’ gun research so that we can understand this issue, and for me, it is about banning assault weapons.
“We are here because we are parents, grandparents, sisters, brothers, and friends. And we are here because we represent the American people. It is our job to be here and to stay for as long as we can to make sure we win for the American people.”
###