Washington, D.C. - Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet today spoke on the Senate floor about the Las Vegas shooting and the urgent need to address gun violence across the country.
"I know there are strong beliefs about guns in America-principled beliefs," Bennet said. "But there are also steps that the overwhelming majority of Americans want us to take...This is not about taking guns away from people who have them. It is about keeping guns out of the hands of people who nearly everyone agrees shouldn't have them."
"Yet Congress has done nothing to respond to the American people," Bennet continued. "We did nothing after Aurora. After Newtown. After Orlando. Nothing."
Bennet alluded to Colorado's leadership in closing the gun show loophole and strengthening background checks. He called on Congress to do the same.
Yesterday, Bennet cosponsored the Automatic Gun Fire Prevention Act to close a gap in the law that allows people to avoid restrictions on converting firearms into mass murder weapons with no practical recreational use. The bill would ban the sale of bump stocks, trigger cranks, and similar accessories that accelerate a semi-automatic's rate of fire. The Las Vegas shooter was found with multiple bump stocks in his hotel room.
Bennet closed by calling on his colleagues to finally address this issue, stating he is "so sorry that [his] childrenâ??-â??and America's childrenâ??-â??have to grow up in a country where mass shootings are common."
"Our kids have every right to go see a movie with their parents, to go dancing with their friends, to see a concert on their one night off, without the fear of being shot down by people who have no business carrying such powerful weapons," Bennet concluded. "And they have every right to expect that Congress will finally do something about gun violence in our country. Violence far greater than anywhere else in the industrialized world. In the wake of these horrific acts, as always, Americans spring into action. First responders secure the area and care for the wounded. Neighbors hold vigils to honor the victims and support grieving families. Citizens speak out to demand action from their elected officials. They are doing their jobs. It's time for Congress to do ours."
Read Bennet's full remarks and watch a video HERE.
