Former congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.), who was shot and seriously wounded two years ago, urged the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday to act boldly and courageously to curb an epidemic of gun violence in America.
Appearing before the committee as it opened its first hearing on gun-related violence in more than a year, Giffords spoke clearly but haltingly after she was led to the witness table by her husband.
“Violence is a big problem,” she told the committee. “Too many children are dying. Too many children.”
“We must do something,” she said, looking up at the senators. “It will be hard. But the time is now. You must act. Be bold. Be courageous. Americans are counting on you. Thank you.”
Her appearance contributed emotional resonance to what had already promised to be a dramatic exchange between lawmakers and advocates for and against stricter gun-control laws.
Observers expected the hearing, the committee’s first hearing on the issue in 14 months, to help set the tone for congressional debates over legislation introduced in the wake of the deadly shooting last month at an elementary school in Newtown, Conn., that killed 26 people, including 20 young children.
Giffords was shot in January 2011 at point-blank range at an event in Tucson and suffered brain damage. She sat at a witness table with her husband to give her statement and did not take questions from senators. Afterward, five other invited witnesses — including Giffords’s husband, retired Navy captain and former astronaut Mark Kelly — were scheduled to testify.
In an opening statement, Sen. Charles E. Grassley (Iowa), the top Republican on the panel, said that although the shootings in Newtown and Tucson “are terrible tragedies, the deaths in Newtown should not be used to put forward every gun-control measure that has been floating around for years.”
Saying that “the problem is greater than guns alone,” Grassley added that “any serious discussion of the causes of gun violence must include a complete reexamination of mental health as it relates to mass shootings,” and he condemned violent video games that “celebrate the mass killing of innocent people.”
Kelly told the committee that he and his wife are gun owners who have long supported the Second Amendment but have decided that legislation is needed to reduce gun violence.
“Gabby’s gift for speech is a distant memory,” Kelly said. “She struggles to walk, and she is partially blind.” But, he added, “we aren’t here as victims. We’re speaking to you today as Americans.”
“After Newtown, we said, this time must be different,” Kelly told the committee. “Something must be done.” He noted that the Tucson shooter emptied his ammunition clip in 15 seconds, firing 33 bullets that caused 33 wounds. A child who was killed in the rampage was “shot with the 13th bullet or after,” Kelly said, implicitly making the case for banning high-capacity magazines.
Noting that Giffords “is one of roughly 100,000 victims of gun violence” every year, Kelly said: “The breadth and complexity of gun violence is great, but it is not an excuse for inaction.... As a nation, we are not taking responsibility for the gun rights that our founding fathers have conferred upon us.”
Gabrielle Giffords appears at Senate hearing on gun violence
This article
Gabrielle Giffords appears at Senate hearing on gun violence
can be opened in url
https://newsdevocation.blogspot.com/2013/01/gabrielle-giffords-appears-at-senate.html
Gabrielle Giffords appears at Senate hearing on gun violence
0 komentar:
Posting Komentar