Providing for Consideration of H.R. Federal Extreme Risk Protection Order Act of Providing for Consideration of H.R. Protecting Our Kids Act; and for Other Purposes

Floor Speech

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Ms. ROSS. Madam Speaker, I thank the chairman for yielding.

Madam Speaker, I rise today because there is no greater moral imperative for us as Representatives than protecting the safety of our children and our residents.

In recent weeks, our Nation has been yet again shaken to its core by the senseless attack on our most vulnerable. Heartbreakingly, mass shootings have become a steady drumbeat in American life, striking community after community, and instilling fear in the American people as we drop our kids off at school, go to the grocery store, or enter a house of worship.

Madam Speaker, after each of these terrifying events, after the vigils have been held and the new cycle has moved on, there is one thing that never fades. Every person who has had a friend, neighbor, spouse, or child taken by violence, carries with them the heartbreaking pain of that incomprehensible loss.

So what will it take for Republican leaders to join us in taking action? So many Republicans agree with us. How many kids need to die? How many families need to suffer before they finally say enough is enough?

I have spent much of my public life in public service, and I believe in American democracy. And I still believe in the ability of men and women in this Chamber to set their differences aside, to make transformative change for the public good.

Madam Speaker, my plea to my colleagues across the aisle is to stand up for what is right. Let's start the hard work of building a safer America. I come from a southern State with plenty of law-abiding gun owners, but people from across North Carolina have been reaching out to me and my office, including several Republicans and gun owners.

Madam Speaker, I support the rule and commend it to this body.

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