June 3, 2019 - Issue: Vol. 165, No. 92 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 1st Session

[Page H4208]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       NOW IS THE TIME FOR ACTION

  (Mr. CISNEROS asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. CISNEROS. Madam Speaker, this past Wednesday, I met with a group 
of high school students from my district who started a local March for 
Our Lives chapter to talk about the gun epidemic in our country. Then, 
2 days later, we had another mass shooting in Virginia Beach.
  According to the Mass Shooting Tracker website, there have been over 
181 mass shootings in the United States this year, with over 200 
victims losing their lives.
  I am proud that we finally passed commonsense gun legislation in this 
House that expanded background checks, which is something over 90 
percent of the American people wanted, but we need to do more.
  The shooting in Virginia Beach used both a silencer and a high-
capacity magazine. We need legislation now to outlaw both of those 
items as well as automatic rifles. We need to allow the Centers for 
Disease Control to study the gun epidemic in our country so we can find 
a solution.
  But it is not just mass shootings that we need to address. Over two-
thirds of all gun deaths in the United States are a result of suicides, 
and the number is rising. Over 20 veterans a day are committing 
suicide. We must also study firearm suicide and how it relates to 
mental health and how we can limit firearm access to those who are 
suffering.
  We have a problem in our country, and it is not just going to go 
away. Now is the time for action. Too many lives are at stake.

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