Executive Session

Floor Speech

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Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I want to thank Senators Murphy and Blumenthal for their tremendous leadership that we are here on the floor today to speak about.

I come today not just as a Member of the Senate representing my home State of Washington but as a former educator, as a mother, and as a grandmother devastated by how the gun violence epidemic is tearing apart our families and ravaging our communities in every State.

I am furious at Republican leaders who continue to stand by and do nothing while more and more lives are lost, just as I was after Newtown, Parkland, Sutherland Springs, and Marysville in my home State of Washington. I could go on.

We don't have to continue this cycle of violence, heartbreak, and inaction, and we are here today to emphasize that there is action we can take right now because earlier this year, the House passed H.R. 8-- meaningful, bipartisan gun safety legislation--to address this terrible crisis through universal background checks and other popular reforms. But in the 260 days since H.R. 8 passed the House, it has languished here in the Senate despite repeated calls from myself and my Democratic colleagues for a vote.

That is why 58 days ago, following the tragic events at El Paso, Dayton, and Midland, I joined my Senate Democratic colleagues here on the floor to try to break the cycle and demand that we address the scourge of gun violence in this country by taking a vote here in the Senate on H.R. 8, which would install universal background checks--a policy that, by the way, is supported by an overwhelming majority of Americans.

In the face of Republican apathy, people across the country raised their voices even louder, demanding action to end the endless wave of gun tragedy, so much so that after this summer's string of horrors, President Trump bowed to public pressure and made a commitment to finally act to address the gun violence epidemic.

After months and years of inaction and far, far too many lives lost, it was the first sliver of hope in a long while--that the President and Senate Republicans would finally put the safety of our families over their allegiance to the NRA and do something substantive about ending this Nation's gun violence epidemic, working with Democrats toward commonsense reforms to end gun violence and keep people safe.

Now, more than 2 months later, President Trump has betrayed his pledge to address this tragic epidemic as if the past summer never even happened. Once again, he has chosen to abdicate his responsibility to keep our families and our communities safe and has broken yet another promise he made to the American people, kowtowing to the NRA and its unpopular, hard-right agenda to stymie commonsense gun reform as soon as mass shootings were out of the headlines.

Well, I can assure you, Senate Democrats and I are going to keep fighting for commonsense gun safety reforms, like universal background checks, even when gun violence isn't making a headline that day, because while President Trump continues carrying water for the NRA and Senate Republicans continue hiding behind President Trump, Democrats here understand that Congress has a duty to act to protect lives, and that the President's cowardice absolutely should not set Congress's agenda.

While President Trump's backtracking on this serious issue is disgraceful, I ask my Republican colleagues to remember that we are not beholden to the President or to the gun lobby and that we do not need President Trump's permission to vote on bills or to act to save lives.

In fact, in States across the country, we have been able to take on the gun lobby and make meaningful progress to address this crisis.

In my home State of Washington, we have closed background check loopholes, and we have enacted extreme risk protection orders. We were able to accomplish those things because of the advocacy of groups like Moms Demand Action across my State, the Washington State Alliance for Gun Responsibility, Everytown for Gun Safety, March for Our Lives, and so many more, as well as the dedicated volunteers and activists behind those organizations, the brave people who have been out making their voices heard and putting pressure on lawmakers to do their jobs to end this senseless epidemic, people like Jane Weiss, who lives in Mill Creek, WA. After she tragically lost her niece to gun violence, Jane joined the fight to pass lifesaving legislation in Washington State by putting pressure on her State lawmakers and won.

There are people like Jane all across the country who are speaking up and fighting back, even when it means reliving some of the hardest moments of their lives, in order to prevent others from suffering as much as they have. That is hard and brave work to do, but there is absolutely nothing hard or brave about simply having a vote on bipartisan, House-passed legislation to ensure universal background checks. To the contrary, it is the height of cowardice not to hold that vote while families across the country wonder which movie theater or shopping mall or synagogue or mosque or church or community space is next and while students spend their time in school on active shooter drills while they should be learning. Unfortunately, cowardice is what we are seeing from far too many Republicans here in the Senate and in the White House when it comes to protecting families from this scourge of gun violence.

I want to be clear. I hope my Republican colleagues allow this legislation to pass today, but if they don't, for Jane and so many others, Senate Democrats are going to keep shining a spotlight on the inaction on gun violence here in the Senate and the broken promises coming out of the White House. We are going to keep making the case, building support, and we will not give up until this is done.

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