Statement on Gun Safety Legislation

When I signed the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act—the first significant piece of gun safety legislation in nearly 30 years—I said that there was still work to be done to keep our communities safe and keep dangerous firearms out of dangerous hands. In the short time since, communities across America have been struck by tragedy after tragedy, including mass shootings from Colorado Springs to Monterey Park and daily acts of gun violence that do not make national headlines.

Today Senator Feinstein, with whom I worked with to pass the last assault weapons ban in 1994, has once again introduced an assault weapons and high-capacity magazine ban in the Senate, as well as legislation raising the age to purchase them to 21. These measures have been cosponsored by Senators Murphy, Blumenthal, and others. In the 10 years that the assault weapons ban was on the books, mass shootings went down. After Republicans let the law expire in 2004 and those weapons were allowed to be sold again, mass shootings tripled.

I urge both Chambers of Congress to act quickly and deliver this assault weapons ban to my desk. The majority of the American people agree with this commonsense action. There can be no greater responsibility than to do all we can to ensure the safety of our children, our communities, and our Nation.