KLOBUCHAR: “It's really important to express the grief but to turn it into action…we cannot wait 10 years…to do something when it comes to the threat posed by assault weapons”
WATCH KLOBUCHAR FULL REMARKS HERE
WASHINGTON - At a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing titled, “After the Highland Park Attack: Protecting Our Communities from Mass Shootings” featuring testimony from Highland Park, IL Mayor Nancy Rotering, U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) highlighted the need to act on commonsense reforms to combat gun violence and prevent mass shootings.
“Last week, I met with survivors from the horrific shooting in Highland Park - kids, parents. And I also met with another group from Uvalde where I spoke with the 10 year old girl who was in the classroom next door during the Robb Elementary shooting…It really brought home to me that tragedy didn't end…It continues for the families,” said Klobuchar. “I think it's really important to express the grief but to turn it into action…And I have talked with many gun owners…who support the Second Amendment but believe in commonsense gun safety measures…we cannot wait 10 years…to do something when it comes to the threat posed by assault weapons.”
Klobuchar also underscored the need to crack down on the proliferation of dangerous gun conversion devices: “Part of what makes assault weapons so dangerous is their high rate of fire…which is also true when handguns are actually modified with conversion devices that actually turn them into fully automatic weapons. These devices can be purchased from foreign manufacturers for under $20 and can be installed in under a minute.”
Klobuchar has long led efforts to prevent gun violence. Provisions from the Protecting Domestic Violence and Stalking Victims Act, her bill with Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-MI) to close the ‘boyfriend loophole’ and prevent abusive dating partners from buying or owning firearms were included in the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act signed into law by President Biden earlier this month.
Last November, Klobuchar and Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) urged the Department of Justice to address the use and proliferation of “auto-sears” and other dangerous firearm devices, calling on the Department to work with state and local law enforcement to tackle the issue.
A transcript of Klobuchar’s exchange is given below. Video is available for TV download HERE and for online viewing HERE.
Sen. Klobuchar: Thank you very much. Senator, as a proud graduate of University of Chicago Law School, I knew that and I appreciate you sharing it with the rest of the committee. Dr. Hunter, thank you for your service in the Marine Corps. I'm from a state, Minnesota, with a strong tradition of hunting and fishing. And I have talked with many gun owners, like yourself, who support the Second Amendment but believe in commonsense gun safety measures including banning assault weapons. I always look at these proposals and ask myself would this hurt my Uncle Dick and his deer stand? And could you explain, as a gun owner combat veteran who grew up sports shooting. Based on your knowledge of guns, does my Uncle Dick need an assault weapon in his deer stand?
Dr. Hunter: Thank you. Thank you very much for this question. One of these times I'll get the microphone to work correctly when I press it the first time too. And, you know, as someone who has spent time around guns my entire life. In my opinion, an AR-15 is not an ideal weapon for deer hunting and so your Uncle Dick likely will not be using one for deer hunting.
Sen. Klobuchar: Okay, thank you. Part of what makes assault weapons so dangerous is their high rate of fire, as you know, which is also true when handguns are actually modified with conversion devices that actually turn them into fully automatic weapons. These devices can be purchased from foreign manufacturers for under $20 and can be installed in under a minute. That's why this week I am introducing legislation with Senator Gary Peters of Michigan to require federal law enforcement to coordinate with local law enforcement to crack down on these illegal devices. Do you agree that keeping illegal conversion devices off of our streets will also help save lives?
Dr. Hunter. Thank you for the question on that. What the research shows us about these weapons is, when they are used, there is a higher rate of injury and death. And some of the research around the initial federal Assault Weapons Ban did show that there were ways to essentially make copycat weapons and it had the same effects as the weapons that were intended to be banned. And so while I haven't seen the exact legislation, what the research does show us is that anything that increases a rate of fire or increases the deadliness of a weapon will lead to more injuries and deaths.
Sen. Klobuchar: Thank you. Mayor, thank you for your leadership that you've shown your community and really the nation. Last week I met with survivors from the horrific shooting in Highland Park, kids, parents. And I also met with another group from Uvalde where I spoke with the 10 year old girl who was in the classroom next door during the Robb Elementary shooting. It was her friend, she was in the same grade, that she lost. She had pictures of her friends, which she had on a little button that she wore around her neck. It really brought home to me that tragedy didn't end, of course not in the classroom, it didn't even end at the funerals, didn't end at the hospital. It continues for the families. There isn't just one victim. Could you talk about the long term impacts that you expect to see in Highland Park and how people are dealing with their grief?
Rotering: We are still a community trying to figure out the next step to healing. We observed a moment of silence a week after. We held our vigil with traumatized community members as well as SWAT teams and rooftop sniper teams, because people were scared to gather together. And just before this hearing, I spoke with the husband of a survivor who is still in the ICU. Who here we are two and a half weeks later is still fighting for preserving her ability to live her life as she has in the past. And we know obviously about Cooper Roberts. There is a lot of physical and emotional pain that we will all be carrying with us. But for a lot of folks, their lives will never be the same. We are trying to figure out how do we get our children to feel safe going into school next month. And while I wholeheartedly appreciate the support, all of the mental health efforts and the school hardening efforts and the red flag laws and everything that everyone is trying to do. At the bottom line we know that moving forward as a community, moving forward as a nation, we need to get combat weapons out of civilian hands. So I appreciate the question. It's still a new journey for all of us. It'll be a long journey. But right now we need these weapons out of civilian hands.
Sen. Klobuchar: Well said. Well said. And for my very last question, Mr. Chair. And that was so well said. I think it's really important to express the grief but to turn it into action. And you were there, at the White House lawn, when the President gave his remarks after signing into law the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act. I thank so many of us and our colleagues who worked on that, in that there were provisions that many of us, in my case the boyfriend loophole closing that bill, that we’d worked on for 10 years and we finally got it done. Could you explain as we look at the next steps we must take how we cannot wait 10 years or another 10 years or another 50 years to do something when it comes to the threat posed by assault weapons?
Rotering: Highland Park was number 309. And now we're already up to 350 mass shootings in the last 16 days. That many more have been added to the list. There is so much to be celebrated in the safer the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act and we thank you all for your efforts. But, my gosh, how much more needs to happen before this obvious action is taken. We know that there are mental health issues in other countries throughout this world. We know that there are troubled people who are inclined towards violence. What's the differentiating factor? Combat weapons and access to civilians. There's no place for these weapons. I appreciate and share deep concern about the gun violence issues in the city of Chicago, in all of our nation's large cities and frankly elsewhere. But at the end of the day, today's hearing is about how do we reduce mass shootings? We reduce mass shootings by getting rid of combat weapons in civilian hands.
Sen. Klobuchar: Well said. Thank you.
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