Enhanced Presidential Security Act of 2024

Floor Speech

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Mr. LAWLER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman for yielding.

In America, elections are determined at the ballot box, not by an assassin's bullet.

In recent months, we have seen two such attempts on the life of former President Donald Trump: first in Pennsylvania, and most recently in Florida.

That these incidents were allowed to occur is a stain on our country. We have endured through assassinations of political leaders, including Presidents. It is destructive to our country. It is destructive to our democracy, our constitutional Republic, and it undermines the confidence that Americans have in their government and in the electoral process.

But for a millimeter's difference, Donald Trump would be dead. But for a millimeter's difference, an assassin would have upended our election. Regardless of how every American feels, regardless of how every American intends to vote, it is the right of the American people to determine the outcome of this election.

The idea that our election could be decided by an assassin's bullet should shake the conscience of our Nation, and it requires swift action by the Federal Government. It requires Congress to ensure that the Secret Service provides the same level of protection as it does to the President of the United States to the leading candidates for President. In this case, they are former President Trump and Vice President Harris.

Either one of them is going to be President come January 20, 2025, and the American people should get to make that choice.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from New York (Mr. Torres) for assisting in immediately moving to introduce this legislation in the aftermath of the first assassination attempt on Donald Trump.

It is shocking that it took a second assassination attempt for Donald Trump to get the same level of protective detail from the Secret Service as the President of the United States. It shouldn't have come to that, which is all the more reason why this bill is necessary. It will ensure that this never happens again and that the Secret Service conduct an immediate review to determine what resources are needed, what personnel is needed, and report immediately back to Congress.

This will ensure that every candidate running for President gets the same level of protective detail as the current President and that the same level of protective detail afforded to the Vice President is afforded to the Vice-Presidential candidate.

We have a responsibility to ensure their safety and their well-being.

I also commend my colleagues, Congressman Mike Kelly and Jason Crow, who are leading the House Task Force on the Attempted Assassination of Donald J. Trump. Their work to investigate this incident and the detailed shortcomings within the Secret Service will certainly help Congress implement further meaningful reforms in the future and ensure the funding and resources are available.

I think the most important thing for the American people to understand is that it is the responsibility of the government to ensure that our elections are free, fair, and decided by the American people at the ballot box, and that any attempt, either by a foreign government or by a fellow citizen, to undermine that by trying to assassinate a political candidate must be stopped at all costs.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Speaker Johnson, Leader Scalise, and Chairman Jordan for swiftly moving to advance this legislation to the floor for a vote. I encourage every single one of my colleagues, regardless of their political views, regardless of whether they like or dislike one of the candidates, to recognize the fundamental fact that we have a responsibility to ensure their safety and well-being and let the American people decide who will be President, not an assassin and not an assassin's bullet.

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Mr. LAWLER. Mr. Speaker, on the issue of gun violence in America, I think about New York and the disastrous cashless bail law, which was put into effect and supported by the ranking member and continues to be supported by the ranking member, in which more than 80 percent of perps who are carrying and using a gun are released back out onto the street.

I will quote New York City Mayor Eric Adams: ``When it comes to guns, this year, 2,386 people were arrested with a gun. Of those, approximately 1,921 are out on the street.''

Eric Adams went on to say:

``Arrested with a gun, out on the street.''

``Gun arrests in custody, 19.5 percent. Out of custody, over 80 percent.''

``How do you take a gun law seriously when the overwhelming numbers are back on the streets after carrying a gun?''

Eric Adams says very clearly that you can't take it seriously when you refuse to prosecute people who use guns in the commission of a crime.

So many of my colleagues in New York have been so clueless about this. They talk about gun violence, but they have no problem allowing a criminal using guns in the commission of a crime to be put back on the street to do it again and again. It is wrong.

If you want to crack down on gun violence in America, then prosecute criminals who use guns in the commission of a crime, but no, we don't want to do that.

New York raised the age so 16- and 17-year-olds are being treated in family court rather than criminal court, and the gangs are using them, letting them use guns in the commission of a crime because they know they are going to get a slap on the wrist.

Let's get serious about gun violence in America. Let's crack down on criminals who actually use guns in the commission of a crime.

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