US Senator Chris Murphy on Tuesday (May 24) strongly urged his fellow lawmakers to find a way to effectively tackle gun violence. His impassioned appeal came just hours after mass shootout in a school in Texas that killed at least 19 children.
“I’m here on this floor to beg, to literally get down on my hands and knees and beg my colleagues: find a path forward here. Work with us to find a way to pass laws that make this less likely,” Murphy said in a fiery floor speech.
Before his election to the Senate, Murphy represented Connecticut congressional district. Here, 26 children died in a mass shootout in 2012. In his speech on Tuesday, Murphy urged his colleagues to craft legislation to restrict the proliferation of guns
“By doing something, we at least stop sending this quiet message of endorsement to these killers whose brains are breaking, who see the highest levels of government doing nothing, shooting after shooting. What are we doing? Why are we here? What are we doing?” he said.
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In US, guns are available relatively freely. The gun rights are also enshrined in the US Constitution. However, mass shootouts in schools bring the topic to the fore and demand to restrict availability of guns is renewed.
Previous efforts to pass new federal restrictions on guns failed following the Sandy Hook shooting, a 2017 attack on Republican members of Congress practicing baseball, and an attack just 10 days ago at a Buffalo, New York, grocery store.
The US Supreme Court in the coming weeks is expected to rule on a case that could greatly expand the right to carry concealed handguns, in a challenge to a New York state law that opponents say violates the U.S. Constitution’s Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms.
Murphy said he would be happy to work on a bipartisan solution, saying a bill needed to “show progress” and not necessarily be a perfect legislative fix.
(With inputs from agencies)
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