Bipartisan Background Checks Act of 2021

Floor Speech

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Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, well, that is an interesting speech to follow. Mr. Massie was very energized. I haven't seen, of course, that which he submitted for the Record, but 90 percent of America thinks this bill makes sense, 90 percent. Take your own polls. Poll after poll after poll shows overwhelming support of this legislation because it is common sense. It is common sense that you want to assure the community that those who buy weapons that can be used with deadly force, as the gentleman just indicated, are not a danger to themselves or to others.

Mr. Speaker, according to the database from the Associated Press, USA Today, and Northeastern University that tracks mass shootings, which they define as four or more victims, not including the shooter, 2020 was a standout year. After years of setting new records for mass shootings, 2019 had the highest number recorded, 33 mass shootings in one year. But in 2020, there were only two mass shootings: one in February and another in early March.

Of course, Mr. Speaker, those numbers don't count the hundreds of shootings each year in which there are fewer than four victims, with tens of thousands killed or maimed by gun violence annually. The contrast in the number of mass shootings from 2019 to 2020 is stark.

Mr. Speaker, I don't have to explain to my colleagues why mass shootings suddenly came to a halt last year, but it shouldn't take a deadly viral pandemic--which took us out of group meetings, which took us off the streets, which kept us at home--to stop a deadly epidemic of gun violence.

With the arrival of vaccines and passage of President Biden's plan to help make it safe to reopen businesses and schools, we will soon be gathering in groups once more, but nobody wants to see a return to mass shootings, Mr. Speaker. Nobody wants to see a return to deadly school shootings that terrorize America's students.

We shouldn't need a pandemic to reduce gun violence in this country. The way to do that ought to be through passing commonsense gun safety legislation through Congress to make it harder for deadly firearms to get into the hands of those who cannot bear them responsibly. That is what H.R. 8, the Bipartisan Background Checks Act, would do.

Nine out of 10 Americans support the reforms in this bill. Now, I know I have seen some people, Mr. Speaker, shake their head, no, no, that is not the case. Show me a poll that has less than 80 percent of Americans thinking that terrorists should not be able to buy guns, that felons should not be able to buy guns, that domestic abusers should not buy guns, particularly in an accelerated way. You get mad at a partner, you get mad at a girlfriend, a boyfriend, whatever, go down to the store, boy, get a gun, bang.

It is one thing to have a thoughtful purchase: I want to have a hunting gun; I want to have a handgun for target practice; I want a handgun for safety in my home, in my business, in my car. But if you are a person who has shown that you are not somebody who is a responsible person--sort of like driving a car, if you are not responsible, you are a reckless driver and you have been guilty of manslaughter by automobile or something of that nature--people have a right to know that what you do is going to be not a danger to them.

This is one of the greatest examples of legislation that truly reflects the will of the American people. That is why I hope we can come together to pass it with bipartisan support. I don't know that that is going to be the case. But if it is not the case, it will not reflect the will of the American people who would like to see this on a bipartisan basis. Republicans and Democrats polled support this legislation.

Now, if somebody wants to show me a poll that says, no, that is not the case, that is one thing, but I haven't seen a poll that doesn't reflect that. Just as I believe we ought to do this week with Representative Clyburn's bill as well, which could close the loophole that contributed to the reprehensible and racially motivated mass shooting at the Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina, in 2015. Nine people in church slain by somebody who got a gun; who, if the report had come back in a timely fashion, wouldn't have been able to get that gun.

I hope that Senate Republicans will not filibuster this bill. At some point in time the majority ought to rule.

Now, the Second Amendment correctly protects gun ownership. I don't have an argument with that. But the Supreme Court itself said that there could be responsible restraints and items for protection consistent with that amendment. That is what this bill does.

I hope our friends will listen to the voices of parents, children, siblings, spouses, neighbors, and friends of those who were killed by gun violence in recent years; and I hope they will remember the names that bring tears to many eyes and pain in so many hearts. Parkland. Some believe Parkland didn't happen. They are wrong, of course. Sandy Hook; Charleston; Las Vegas; Orlando; Pittsburgh; Annapolis; San Bernardino; Washington Navy Yard, just a few blocks from here; Oak Creek; Tucson; Virginia Tech; and the list could go on and on and on.

I say to the ladies and gentlemen of the House, let's not add more names to this register of grief. Let's not rely on a pandemic to do what we ought to have done so long ago. Let's pass these bills and reduce gun violence the right way, with our votes.

Is this a perfect bill? Will it establish or accomplish the absolute safety?

It will not, but what 90 percent of Americans say is that it is a step in the right direction.

Mr. Speaker, let us take that step.

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