[Zamastan]

Congressional Hall
Public Transcripts Records

July 20th, 2019

108 Session 200: A3

GUN VIOLENCE: WE NEED TO DO BETTER; Congressional Record Vol. 108, No. 200, A3

*SPEAKER OF THE CHAMBER, FOLEY SAKZI*: “This is the third floor proceeding of the day. It is July twentieth, the year two-thousand and nineteen, session two hundred, section A-3. I have been given the subject entitled Gun Violence, colon we need to do better, submitted by the Senator from Redeemer’s Land, District 4. I’m giving Senator Boone a minute to discuss, please quiet in the chamber, Mister Boone, you may proceed.”

*SENATOR KEANAN BOONE*: “Mister Speaker, a few days ago, we voted on a resolution for improved gun control measures. It is the first gun control measure we have taken up in years. It is progress, but we still have so far to go. There are so many lives that have been taken from too many communities.

On April 16 in Garretsville, Pahl, that was the community where a man with a gun took five innocent lives: Trevor Gurn, Jared Clayton, Markilun Yurritan, Russell Granterso, and Josh Killianu.

They were fathers, brothers, sons, uncles, friends, and they joined a
long line of Zamastanians who have been going about their daily lives and
got killed.

Here is what is really sickening: Most of the Members of this body don't even know their names. A week from now, you are going to forget their names, and you are going to replace them with another set of names, not because they don't deserve to be remembered, but because every day in Zamastan, 20 people get shot.

Can we remember all their names? I can't. And shame on us for allowing that to happen.

Occasionally, one of those shootings captures our attention, and we offer some thoughts and prayers. Leave that to families. Leave that to people of faith. We are lawmakers. Our job is to write the laws, fix the laws.

If we took 100 million guns off the street tomorrow, we would still
have a sizable collection of guns that ranks more than most countries in the International Democratic Union. We need to do more. Thank you, Mister Speaker.

*SPEAKER OF THE CHAMBER, FOLEY SAKZI*: Thank you, Mister Boone. I would like to point out that, yes, we did pass the referendum with a resounding yes, 91-8-1, to be exact, and I understand your appeal and emotion as genuine. I certainly hope it is genuine, Mr. Senator. I will divert three minutes to the Senator from Jade’s 19th, Senator Li, you have the floor.

*SENATOR BRAD LI*: Mister Speaker, the liberal push for gun control is admirable and commendable, but what Senator Boone fails to note in his address, however sympathetic and moving, is that his proposed legislation has endangered more Zamastanians with its push for more and more gun control.

By definition, criminals don't follow the law. Criminals don't honor gun laws. They steal. They commit murder, all sorts of crimes without permission. They don't seek permission when they take something from you, when they enter your home.

They don't seek permission to become gun owners. Yet, what happens here in the legislation this week, limits the rights, limits the ability for people to defend themselves, defend their own homes, defend their own families, by having less options or less ability to get a weapon if they need it, especially timely.

These measures do not work. They do not work to stop the shootings that are often cited as the reason to deny people their rights in this country.

Indeed, it is a political agenda that gets pushed in every election, every possible time in legislation, and finally, with the majority they have, they are able to push this stuff through and harm innocent Zamastanians and their ability to defend themselves. I would also like to mention that though, yes, this year has had an increase in gun violence, we are still in the midst of the lowest recorded levels of gun violence in fifty years.

This has to come to a stop. I hope the Senate will defeat Boone’s proposed measure, which he failed to mention is up for vote in the coming weeks.