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The Right of the People to Keep and Bear Arms Shall Not Be Infringed

Floor Speech

Date: March 9, 2021
Location: Washington, DC
Issues: Guns Health and Health Care Criminal Justice

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Mr. NORMAN. Mr. Speaker, the right of the people to keep and bear arms in the United States is a fundamental principle expressed in our Bill of Rights.

Let me be clear: I will never do anything to infringe upon this right clearly laid out in our Second Amendment, but this bill, H.R. 8, will do just that.

H.R. 8 is a sweeping piece of legislation that imposes burdens on the constitutional rights of law-abiding citizens. It is plain and simple. This bill is another attempt by Democrats to limit the rights of the American people.

This legislation would make it a crime, subject to limited exceptions, to simply hand a firearm to another person. This bill could trigger penalties of up to a year in prison and a $100,000 fine.

This bill would make it illegal to transfer a firearm to another person during a life-threatening emergency. That could be considered a crime punishable by a fine of monetary dollars.

Also, just so we are on the same page, universal background checks do not stop criminals from possessing firearms. As my colleagues on the other side of the aisle have said: In the United States less than one percent of criminals who had possessed a firearm during their offense got firearms through legal channels--less than one percent. That means that these criminals obtained their firearms outside of the setting that would require a background check to begin with.

What makes you believe that this legislation would change that, Mr. Speaker?

Our solution should be focused on improving access to mental healthcare services, addressing the root causes of violence, and carrying out our existing laws through investments in our law enforcement and community programs--not walking all over law-abiding citizens for protecting their loved ones. We all swore to uphold the Constitution, and it should be our goal in this Congress to work against legislation like this that would clearly infringe on our Second Amendment rights of American citizens.

Mr. Speaker, I will be a resounding ``no'' when it is time to vote.

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