Senator Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) is speaking up for the need to pass gun safety laws after the deadliest mass shooting in modern United States history.
“We cannot banish evil in the earth. Congress can’t do that; the president can’t do that. What Congress can do, what Congress must do, is pass laws to keep our citizens safe,” Schumer said on the floor of the Senate Monday, adding that action “starts with laws that help prevent guns, especially the most dangerous guns, from falling into the wrong hands.”
While Schumer did not point out any specific legislation, he did say we must “bind up this new national wound” before questions could be answered.
“How did this monster acquire the arsenal he used to rain down death on a crowd of innocents? Were those guns purchased and compiled illegally?” he said. “Some [questions] will have answers, and we’ll have to reckon with the fact that this man was able to assemble an arsenal of military-grade weapons.”
“We will ferret out the facts based on the reality we will confront; we must confront deeply troubling issues that are raised by this atrocity,” he added.
Schumer represents the Democrats’ renewed focus on getting stricter gun control laws through Congress. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA)–the senator who has been working with Schumer and Donald Trump to find a DACA solution–is asking House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) to create a select committee on gun violence, according to The Hill.
Schumer’s call comes after Hillary Clinton tweeted Monday morning calling for people to “stand up to the NRA.”
The crowd fled at the sound of gunshots.
Imagine the deaths if the shooter had a silencer, which the NRA wants to make easier to get.
— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) October 2, 2017
Our grief isn't enough. We can and must put politics aside, stand up to the NRA, and work together to try to stop this from happening again.
— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) October 2, 2017