Good morning. , i am the steny hoyer majority leader of the house of representatives and the them aquatic leader in the house of representatives. We have been out of congress for just a few days on summer recess. During that time, we have confronted great tragedy. Sadly, continuing tragedy. How Many Americans will lose their lives for their loved ones . Beforeant gun violence the senate, state Senate Takes Action . Than 9000s year, more , haveans, in seven months been killed by gun violence. Including those killed in more shootings this year in america. Paso andks in el dayton and gilroy, california, and the violence all within about seven days of one another, more than in the neighborhood of 50 americans lost their lives to gun violence. R lives to gun violence. Some five months ago, on february 27, 2019, the house of representatives passed a bill, hr8, a bill that is supported by over 95 of americans. It passed the house of representatives and was sent to the United States senate, where sadly, it languishes. Is it the solution to all of this violence . It is not. But 95 of americans supported because they believe it is a significant and important step to take in the face of this violence. The house has acted. And it is time, past time, for the house to act. We have a sitin. We had a sitin. Some two years ago, three years ago, on june 22, 2016. Since that time, we believe in the neighborhood of some 25,000 plus lives have been lost. I am now going to introduce a young woman whose school was subjected to gun violence. And as a result, a young student, her friend, lost their lives. Her life. She died on march 20, 2018. Jackson, one of her classmates, was one of those who thought silence and inaction was not enough. Jackson . Jackson good morning. I am 18. I recently graduated from southern maryland. If you recognize my school, on march 20, 2018, my friend was shot and killed. Our entire community was traumatized. Im here to represent the young people across america who have had their lives ripped apart by gun violence. Im here today to represent the young people who want change. And i am here to tell senator mcconnell that its time to take immediate action on gun violence. We need a grant system, we need a system for laws, we need funding for the cdc to do their jobs and research gun violence. At this point, there are two options. Either the senate votes on this lifesaving legislation immediately, or we float out vote out those who stand in our way. Gun violence is a national crisis. They need to start acting like it. Thank you. Mr. Hoyer thank you. Jaxson is a leader in march for our lives. I want to introduce congressman donald payne of new jersey. thank you forne your leadership in bringing us here today. Good morning. As the congressman from newark, new jersey, i come from a town that continues to suffer from this national plague of gun violence. I want to publicly offer my full support of the bipartisan background check act of 2019. This act will make sure people who buy guns are lawabiding and loyal citizens, that gun owners are people who want to defend their families, not attack our citizens. Its a statement that my me and my colleagues in the congress will not sit back and allow another el paso, dayton, or any more shootings to happen without action. Yet, we mourn those lost in these all too frequent disasters. Its important to remember that while some cities suffer these tragedies occasionally, others suffer them daily. Like me, many members return to districts where gun violence is all too common. The rare exemption to find a family that has not been the victim of this national menace. Thats why i support this act so strongly. We need to know who is buying guns and why. We need to make sure that our sportsmen are getting the opportunity to use guns in the proper manner. And not some psychopath. We need to show the country that our tolerance of gun violence is over. Now, i would like to introduce a young man who has suffered this tragedy. But fortunately, he is here to speak on his own. Gregory jackson. Gregory good afternoon. Im gregory jackson, with the Community Justice fund. Justice action fund. Also, a survivor of gun violence. I want to thank the house of representatives are making such a strong stride forward to reduce violence. As hopefully many of you know, hundreds of thousands of people survive gun violence every year. While we may think thats a small thing, what we dont see are the hours of therapy they go through, the trauma, the tears familys eyes. The years of Emotional Trauma that happen with an act of violence. I grew up in rural virginia. Guns were a means to hunt. Maybe to protect yourself. But in 2013, i was struck down by a stray bullet when somebody tried to take my life. After 21 days in the hospital, i was able to get back on my feet. After six months of recovery. I am still dealing with it every day. Ive spoken to hundreds of survivors. They are going through the same thing every single day and really waiting for congress to step up and do something. In our cities every day, we are losing people. In washington dc, we lost 10yearold walking across the street to gun violence. A 12yearold was shot down at a mcdonalds. After a few weeks after hosting his own gun prevention rally. This is an epidemic that is hitting people in our communities every day. I beg of the senate to step up and do something, to push hr8 and strive to pass legislation that will prevent gun violence that is traumatizing in so many lives today. Thank you. Mr. Hoyer i now want to introduce the doctor. He is going to introduce the doctor. Congressman john dyer of virginia. Thank you. Dyer this is deadly serious. This is a typical day in the United States, there will be at least one mass shooting. They dont all make the National Headlines like el paso or ton, but they claim of huge toll on american life. Mitch mcconnell isnt doing anything about it. This is because he doesnt know what the problem is. We know why he isnt here. He is waiting for the outrage to die down and the headlines to change and people to turn the page and think about something else. But as he delays and weights and waits for people to lose interest, 100 americans are dying every day. Dr. Martin luther king junior told the crowd assembled in front of the Lincoln Memorial that weve come to this house about the fierce urgency of now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of coolingoff or gradualism. Now is the time to make real promises. Democracy. The house has done its job to save these lives. Now, Mitch Mcconnell needs to do his. I would like to introduce the assistant professor of surgery and director of emergency general surgery and chief of the division of acute care surgery at Johns Hopkins hospital. Once the victim of gun violence, he spends his time as a clinician and researcher and advocate for the goal of reducing gun violence in america. He sees the wounds these bullets make every day. He brings together Health Care Providers to advocate for solutions to gun violence. He also serves on the board of directors for the brady campaign. Doctor . Dr. Sakran good morning. Let me thank the majority leader for his leadership and the rest of his team for being here today. I stand before you not just as a survivor of gun violence or a brady board member, but as a trauma surgeon. As one of Many Health Care professionals, we are front and center in taking care of these patients day in and day out. And make no mistake about this, over the next decade, over one million americans will be shot. And that doesnt even begin to tell the impact it has on society. The mothers, fathers, sisters, and brothers are devastated that are devastated after this. And if we are being honest, the Mainstream Media covers this issue around Mass Shootings. But there are young men from black and brown communities that are injured and killed in cities like baltimore, chicago, philadelphia. And those stories often go untold. This is a complex health problem. As the congressman said, there is no one solution. Its a multifaceted approach. The house has done their job. They passed hr8. Now, were calling on senator Mitch Mcconnell to take action. Not sides. Its about time that we start approaching this issue as a uniquely american problem. Thats what it is. This is not a republican problem or a democrat problem. Its an american problem. Is it going to solve everything . No. Its a step in the right direction. It is critical. Since the brady bill has been passed, over 3. 5 million firearms have been capped out of kept out of the hands of people that should not have them, like felons, domestic abusers, those that are a danger to themselves. Themselves or others. So we are calling on the senate to have the moral courage to do the right thing. Because americans are not going to stand on the sidelines of history. Thank you. As people continue to be injured and killed. Thank you. Mr. Hoyer thank you, dr. Doctor. I would like to introduce the gentlewoman from michigan, who has been involved with issue perhaps longer than any of us. She and her husband have been outspoken advocates and we appreciate her coming from michigan to introduce one of our speakers and to give her testimony, as well, urging mr. Mcconnell to act. Debbie didn debbie. Debbie thank you for your leadership and for holding this today. 10 days ago, the weekend that is the most recent episode, we have now seen 253 Mass Shootings. It was dearborn homecoming. In the city that i live in. Its a three day festival. Friday night, before the shooting, i served beer in the beer tent. All three nights. People knew where to find me. A mother came and grabbed my hand and would not let it go. She said to me, my daughter is starting kindergarten this fall. She is five years old. I have to decide about whether i buy her the backpack that she wants or a bulletproof backpack. Her daughter is on the autistic scale. To me, she will never stay quiet in a closet. Im scared to death. You have to do something. You have to do something. On sunday after the shooting, i was in the access tent. Its an Arab American Organization in my hometown. Little kids know me. They know me as mr. Ms. Debbie. They said to me, why do people hate us . Are we safe . Our children are going back to school in a couple of weeks. Some before labor day, some after. I shouldnt be answering questions of mothers of kindergartners or the children themselves about whether they are safe or if they are hated. Weve got to stop this partisan bickering. My husband was one of the founders of the nra and a board member. But before he died, he said deborah, im proud of you. Times have changed. We have to do something. We cant keep going to our corners and not figured out what not figure out what were going to do. In the top 25 industrialized nations, 93 of the children between zero and 14 that are killed by guns are american children. It is wrong. The senate has got to come to the table. They have to act. Weve got to start to do something so our kids can start school and not look at me and say, are we safe . Why do people hate me . Now, i am proud to introduce the Vice President of policy at also comes to this issue because of his own family. His parents were shot. His mother was killed. Christian, thank you for being here. My name is christian. I am the Vice President of policy at brady. Home ints were coming 2005 from a holiday vacation. They spent the weekend getting sunburn on a boat. When they came back, we experienced what far too Many Americans experience every day. My dad was shot three times and survived his wounds. My mom was shot and killed with a single bullet to the back. Neighbors there that day said that she had begged for her life, was able to get up and run and made it about 10 steps before the bullet shot and killed her. She died before she hit the ground. We will never know if that is true. Thats a nice sentiment. Gun violence is not abstract to any of us. Its very real. Gun violence is not just a statistic or a number on a sheet of paper. When we read about the 100 people who die every day, its very real to us, because its a the life we live. Our lives will never be the same. Gun violence, to me, isnt just those figures, it is the fact that i wont be able to call my mother at the end of this day. It is the fact that my mom will never know the joy of being a grandmother, she will never be able to hold one of her grandchildren. Gun violence to me is that on my wedding day, not only is my wife never going to have the opportunity to know the most wonderful woman in my life aside from her, there was an empty chair i had to stare at as my wife walked down the aisle. This is not abstract. This is not a conversation that is too soon or too early. It is way too late. The fact is, we dont need ession once resays is rec is back. We dont need action in 2020 when we have potentially a new president or new congress. We need action right now. Mitch mcconnell has bills on his desk right now. And every day those bills are not signed into law, more people will experience what we have lived through every single day. The cost of this inaction, the cost of not bringing these bills forward, lets be clear, its human lives. Its more children that will not be able to call their mother when they go home. Its more parents who will not be able to hold their children night when they come home. At night when they come home. The time is now. And we have to act. I am so thankful to have a house that is willing to take these steps. We need the senate to follow suit. Thank you. Mr. Hoyer thank you very much. Now, i would like to introduce Anthony Brown from maryland. He himself is a retired colonel. He knows a lot about guns and safety. Congressman Anthony Brown. Thank you. Brown i would like to thank leader hoyer. I want to thank my colleagues. They have been long after this effort and have worked diligently day in and day out in their communities and in congress as we struggle with this effort to reduce gun violence in our communities. I also want to thank the survivors and family members. The victims were here today, who are here today, sharing your tragedy, your trauma, and putting a face on the impact of what gun violence has on us as a nation. I thank you for being here today. Our gun violence problem, as we all know, is an epidemic. More than 250 Mass Shootings this year alone. More than several tens of thousands, 36,000 people shot and killed on average every year in this country. In the face of this epidemic, Mitch Mcconnell is doing nothing. He wont even bring up a bipartisan solution we have passed over 165 days ago. Its now. The time for Mitch Mcconnell and President Trump to do something meaningful about gun violence in the United States. And meaningful action doesnt end with signing a bipartisan background check bill. Which is important. We must pursue a federal red flag law similar to what weve done in maryland, which empowers Law Enforcement to remove weapons from those who are a threat to themselves or others. We have to ban highcapacity magazines that allow the dayton shooter and so many others to fire off tens of rounds in mere seconds. We have to ban assault weapons to get these weapons of war off our streets. I was asked recently, someone said to me, why do you have bill . I support banning assault weapons entirely. I didnt come up with the idea. The day after the parkland mass shooting, President Trump said, lets raise the age to 21, which is what the ages to buy a handgun from a federally registered dealer. Someone asked me, why should we raise the age to 21 would weaken when we can let 18yearolds fire an m16 machine gun or drive a tank in the military . Theres a real difference. In the military, we put weapons of war in the hands of everyone from age 18 to 60 because theyve got a job to do. An important job to do. They have a job to go to war and win the war and come home to their families and their country. The important thing is to come home to a country that is safe and secure. And we make this nation safe and secure when we take weapons out of the hands of people who have weapons of war out of the hands of people who have no business having those weapons. In the military, we train and supervise. There is a real purpose. There is no purpose to have an ar15 semiautomatic weapon with a 100 round capacity magazine. Theres a clear distinction. There is a clear distinction in the minds of the overwhelming majority of america. We in the house have done some important work. We have sent one bill over to the senate. Hr8. Theres a lot more we could send. But we said lets act on this one, where there is almost universal consensus. So as we stand here today in a call for more action to improve more efforts to improve Mental Health and Mental Health services, addressing assault weapons, highcapacity magazines, lets start with passing universal act around background checks which has bipartisan support in the house and almost universal support among the American Public. Its a real privilege for me to be here this morning with my colleagues. But also, to introduce dr. Wendy edmonds. Dr. Edmonds is my constituent. Her sister, sylvia fraser, was one of 12 people murdered on september 16, 2013 at the Washington Navy yard. Sylvia worked as an Information Assurance manager since 2000. She was a patriotic american dedicated to our country. She should be alive today with her family, and she is not. Her family and serving her country, and she is not. Dr. Edmonds. Edmonds i watched my sister, sylvia, move about the church gracefully as she put on a great, memorable dance performance. When the program was over, she said, im exhausted. I hugged her neck, kissed her on the cheek, and said, go on home, get some rest. Monday morning, september 16, 2013, i woke up, carried on with my usual routine, preparing for work. It was a beautiful, sunny day. Suddenly my phone started ringing, c